Illinois basketball is fighting for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament and an upset over Michigan basketball would help their cause.
The Big Ten has been the deepest conference in NCAA basketball for the better part of two years and the league is loaded with contenders for the top line in the NCAA Tournament. Two of the league’s best teams are set to square off in one of the week’s most anticipated matchups as Illinois basketball travels to Ann Arbor to take on Michigan basketball.
The Fighting Illini bounced back nicely from an upset loss at Michigan State by picking up consecutive wins against Nebraska and Wisconsin. Both wins took place without Ayo Dosunmu who may return from his broken nose for this game. The game against the Badgers was an encouraging one for Illinois, which withstood a furious charge in the final minutes led by Wisconsin’s D’Mitrik Trice to pick up a 74-69 victory.
The wins — combined with a three-game losing streak from Ohio State — put the Illini in possession of the final spot on the top line in the NCAA Tournament entering the final week of the regular season. The best chance that Illinois has to further cement its status there is to find a way to beat Michigan.
That won’t be easy since the Wolverines have been a well-oiled machine all season, making effortless work out of a rugged conference by going 13-1 in Big Ten play. Michigan made it look easy in a road contest against Indiana on Saturday, winning 73-57 as Franz Wagner led all scorers with 21 points.
The Wolverines have had to go through a gauntlet of games down the stretch as they try to make up games they missed during a COVID pause but have stood up to the conference’s best so far. Finding a way to knock off the Illini here would provide further separation between themselves and Baylor, who Michigan passed on the S-curve by virtue of the Bears’ loss over the weekend.
How to bet and watch Illinois at Michigan
- Date: Tuesday, March 2
- Time: 7:00 p.m. ET
- Location: Ann Arbor, MI
- Venue: Crisler Center
- TV: ESPN
- Live Stream: WatchESPN
- Line: Michigan -8 (FanDuel)
- Prediction: Michigan 77, Illinois 73
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