Michigan Wolverines vs Illinois Fighting Illini Prediction, 3/2/2023 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Michigan Wolverines vs Illinois Fighting Illini

Date: Thursday, March 2, 2023

Location: State Farm Center in Champaign, IL

TV: ESPN

The Illinois Fighting Illini (19-10) will take on the Michigan Wolverines (17-12) at State Farm Center on Thursday.

The Michigan Wolverines played Wisconsin and earned the victory with a final of 87-79 in their last game. Michigan ended having earned a 49.2% field goal percentage (29 out of 59) and converted 7 of their 21 shots from 3-point land. From the charity stripe, the Wolverines buried 22 of 26 attempts for a rate of 84.6%. When it comes to hauling in boards, they earned 35 with 5 of them being on the offensive end. They also doled out 7 assists in this contest in addition to forcing the other team into 8 turnovers and having 4 steals. In reference to the defense, Michigan allowed the other team to go 42.9% from the floor on 30 out of 70 shooting. Wisconsin earned 10 assists and had 5 steals in the matchup. In addition, Wisconsin collected 29 rebounds (6 offensive, 23 defensive), but didn't notch a rejection. Wisconsin finished the contest at 91.7% from the charity stripe by converting 11 of their 12 attempts. They knocked down 8 out of their 23 attempts from beyond the arc. With respect to fouls, the Wolverines ended up with 17 while Wisconsin accumulated 19 fouls.

Kobe Bufkin is a guy who was a major contributor in this matchup. He was able to score 28 points on 10 of 21 shooting. He played 42 mins and also pulled down 8 boards. He finished the game at 47.6% from the field and also distributed 2 assists.

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Michigan steps onto the court with a win-loss mark of 17-12 on the season. They lose possession via turnover 9.9 times per game and as a unit are committing 15.1 personal fouls on a nightly basis. As a team, Michigan is pulling down 36.2 rebounds per contest and is sitting with 356 dimes this year, which is 278th in Division 1 in terms of passing. The Wolverines are shooting 34.5% on shots beyond the perimeter (222 of 644) and 70.6% from the free throw line. They are averaging 73.4 points per game (138th in the country) while shooting 45.1% from the floor.

On the defensive end, the Wolverines have forced 10.4 turnovers on a nightly basis and they draw 16.9 personal fouls. They are ranked 94th in the nation in giving up assists to the opposition with 343 relinquished this year. The Wolverines defensively are giving up a field goal percentage of 42.5% (746 of 1,755) and they surrender 35.5 boards per game as a squad. They are surrendering 32.1% on 3-pointers and they are ranked 144th in the nation in opponents PPG (68.7).

For their last game, the Illinois Fighting Illini went home defeated by a final of 72-60 when they faced Ohio State. In reference to rebounding, Illinois allowed Ohio State to collect 34 in total (6 offensive). They shot 21.4% from 3-point land by connecting on 3 out of 14 and ended up shooting 9 of 10 at the free throw line (90.0%). The Fighting Illini permitted Ohio State to make 30 of their 56 attempts from the floor which gave them a rate of 53.6% in this game. Overall, the Fighting Illini shot 22 out of 61 from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 36.1%. When talking about three-point shots, Illinois knocked down 6 of their 29 tries (20.7%). They were able to bury 10 of them for a rate of 71.4%. Ohio State was called for 15 fouls in this game which got the Fighting Illini to the free throw line for a total of 14 attempts. They turned it over 11 times, while getting 4 steals in the matchup. The Fighting Illini pulled down 18 defensive rebounds and 7 offensive boards for a total of 25 for the game.

Coleman Hawkins ended up being a factor for the Fighting Illini in this game. He earned 14 points in his 38 minutes on the hardwood and totaled 2 assists in the game. He made 6 out of 13 in this game for a field goal percentage of 46.2%, and accounted for 7 rebounds.

Illinois has a win-loss record of 19-10 on the campaign. The Fighting Illini are responsible for committing 16.4 fouls per contest and they go 67.7% from the charity stripe. Their rate of assisting teammates is at 12.5 times per contest (236th in college hoops) and they are turning it over 13.1 times per contest. Illinois has accumulated 2,151 pts for the season (74.2 per contest) and they grab 38.2 rebounds per game. In terms of offensive execution, the Fighting Illini are shooting 45.1% from the floor, which has them ranked 162nd in D-1.

The Fighting Illini on the defensive end are ranked 59th in college basketball in PPG given up with 65.6. They are able to force 13.3 turnovers per game and allow teams to shoot 41.1% from the floor (44th in college basketball). The Illinois defense surrenders 33.2% on 3-pointers (172 of 518) and opponents are connecting on 70.6% of their shots from the charity stripe. They concede 10.8 assists and 33.2 rebounds per contest, ranking them 44th and 126th in the country.

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Illinois

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