Michigan Wolverines vs Ohio State Buckeyes Prediction, 2/8/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Michigan Wolverines vs Ohio State Buckeyes

Date: Sunday, February 8, 2026

Location: Value City Arena in Columbus, OH

TV: ESPN+

The Ohio State Buckeyes (15-7) welcome the Michigan Wolverines (21-1) at Value City Arena on Sunday.

The Michigan Wolverines faced off with Penn State and walked away with a win by a score of 110-69 in their last contest. Michigan walked away from the contest with a 60.6% field goal percentage (40 of 66) and converted 15 out of their 29 shots from 3-point land. At the charity stripe, the Wolverines converted 15 of their 17 attempts for a percentage of 88.2%. In relation to getting rebounds, they collected 39 with 9 of them being on the offensive end. They also doled out 31 assists in this contest in addition to forcing 5 turnovers and earning 3 steals. When it comes to the defense, Michigan allowed the other team to shoot 37.1% from the floor on 23 of 62 shooting. Penn State recorded 7 dimes and had 6 steals for the contest. In addition, Penn State snagged 19 rebounds (8 offensive, 11 defensive), but didn't notch a block. Penn State ended up going 80.8% from the free throw line by knocking down 21 of their 26 attempts. They buried 2 out of their 20 tries from beyond the arc. When it comes to personal fouls, the Wolverines walked away with 20 while Penn State accounted for 14 personal fouls.

Nimari Burnett is one player who played a role in this matchup. He notched 31 points on 11 of 16 shooting. He was on the court for 21 minutes and also snagged 5 boards. He finished the game shooting 68.8% from the floor but finished the game without an assist.

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Michigan heads into this one with a mark of 21-1 on the season. They lose possession by turning the ball over 12.5 times per game and as a group they commit 16.4 personal fouls on a nightly basis. As a unit, Michigan is pulling down 41.8 boards per game and has 425 assists on the season, which has them ranked 20th in college hoops in terms of passing the rock. The Wolverines are hitting 35.5% on shots from beyond the arc (206 of 581) and 73.5% from the free throw line. They average 91.4 points per contest (5th in the country) while going 51.6% from the floor.

When they are on defense, the Wolverines are able to force 12.5 turnovers per game while drawing 21.0 personal fouls. They are 4th in D-1 in giving up assists to their opponents with 224 surrendered on the campaign. The Wolverines defensively are giving up a FG percentage of 36.9% (526 of 1,425) and they surrender 32.0 rebounds per contest as a team. They surrender 29.3% on shots from downtown while they are 64th in college in points per game allowed (68.9).

When they last stepped on the hardwood, the Ohio State Buckeyes got the victory with a final of 82-62 when they played Maryland. When discussing rebounding, Ohio State allowed Maryland to grab 25 overall (9 on the offensive glass). They finished shooting 30.8% from distance by going 8 of 26 and ended up shooting 8 out of 15 at the free throw line (53.3%). The Buckeyes allowed Maryland to convert 23 of 49 tries from the floor which gave them a rate of 46.9% in this game. At the conclusion of this game, the Buckeyes ended up shooting 28 for 49 from the floor which had them shooting 57.1%. Pertaining to 3-point shots, Ohio State made 8 of 17 tries (47.1%). They were able to bury 18 of the free throw attempts for a clip of 60.0%. Maryland was called for 24 fouls in this matchup which took the Buckeyes to the free throw line for a total of 30 shots. They also turned it over 8 times, while earning 5 steals for the matchup. The Buckeyes corralled 14 defensive boards and 7 offensive boards totaling 21 for this contest.

Christoph Tilly pitched in for the Buckeyes for the matchup. He knocked down 7 out of 10 for this contest for a field goal percentage of 70.0%, and added 3 rebounds. He accumulated 19 points in his 27 minutes on the hardwood and had 1 assist for this game.

Ohio State has a mark of 15-7 for the year. As an offense, the Buckeyes are connecting on 49.4% from the floor, which is ranked 23rd in the nation. Ohio State has earned 1,808 pts this year (82.2 per game) and they grab 35.2 rebounds per contest. Their rate of dishing out assists is at 15.2 times per contest (112th in college hoops) and they turn the ball over 10.5 times per contest. The Buckeyes are responsible for committing 17.8 fouls per contest and they shoot 77.6% from the charity stripe.

The Buckeyes on defense are ranked 163rd in D-1 in points allowed per contest with 73.0. They are forcing 11.1 turnovers on a nightly basis and allow teams to shoot 43.1% from the floor (137th in the country). The Ohio State defense allows 30.3% on three-point shots (165 of 544) and their opposition makes 74.1% of their free throw shots. They surrender 13.1 assists and 31.5 boards per game, which is ranked 164th and 38th in D-1.

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Michigan

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