Michigan Wolverines vs Northwestern Wildcats Prediction, 2/2/2023 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Michigan Wolverines vs Northwestern Wildcats

Date: Thursday, February 2, 2023

Location: Welsh-Ryan Arena in Evanston, IL

TV: ESPN2

The Michigan Wolverines (11-10) are headed to Welsh-Ryan Arena on Thursday where they will try to beat the Northwestern Wildcats (15-6).

The Michigan Wolverines faced off with Penn State and ended up losing by a score of 83-61 in their last contest. Michigan finished having earned a 42.4% field goal percentage (25 of 59) and buried 6 of their 22 3-pointers. At the free throw line, the Wolverines converted 5 of their 8 shots for a percentage of 62.5%. In reference to hauling in boards, they collected 26 with 6 of them being of the offensive sort. They also recorded 14 assists for this game while forcing the other team into 9 turnovers and having 4 steals. With respect to the defense, Michigan allowed the other team to go 54.4% from the floor on 31 of 57 shooting. Penn State recorded 20 dimes and had 7 steals in this matchup. Moreover, Penn State collected 34 rebounds (6 offensive, 28 defensive), but didn't have a block. Penn State ended up shooting 80.0% from the charity stripe by knocking down 8 of their 10 tries. They also buried 13 of 30 attempts from beyond the arc. When discussing personal fouls, the Wolverines finished with 8 while Penn State had 9 personal fouls.

Jett Howard is a player who was a factor for this game. He ended up walking away with 21 points on 8 out of 13 shooting. He saw the court for 27 mins played but had no rebounds when the time ran out. He walked away from this one shooting 61.5% from the field and also earned 1 assist.

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Michigan heads into this matchup with a win-loss mark of 11-10 on the season. They lose possession via turnover 9.8 times per contest and as a basketball team they commit 15.2 personal fouls per game. As a unit, Michigan is pulling in 36.0 rebounds per contest and is sitting with 266 assists on the campaign, which ranks 275th in college basketball in terms of passing the rock. The Wolverines are shooting 34.3% on 3-pointers (160 of 467) and 68.4% from the free throw line. They average 73.4 points per game (147th in the country) while hitting 44.6% from the field.

When they are on the defensive end, the Wolverines are forcing their opponents into 11.1 turnovers per contest and they draw 17.3 fouls. They give up 32.3% on three-point shots and they are ranked 210th in D-1 in points per game allowed (70.4). The Wolverines are giving up a FG percentage of 42.9% (550 of 1,282) and they surrender 37.0 boards per contest as a team. They are currently ranked 93rd in college hoops in allowing assists to the opposition with 252 surrendered for the season.

The last time they took the court, the Northwestern Wildcats took a loss by a final score of 86-70 against Iowa. When it comes to how they rebounded, Northwestern allowed Iowa to get 29 in total (5 on the offensive side). They shot 47.6% from beyond the arc by connecting on 10 of 21 and finished the game at 18 of 22 from the free throw line (81.8%). The Wildcats allowed Iowa to convert 29 of their 52 tries from the field which had them sitting at 55.8% in the matchup. When the final whistle blew, the Wildcats finished 27 out of 58 from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 46.6%. In terms of shots from beyond the arc, Northwestern buried 4 of 17 tries (23.5%). They were able to knock down 12 of those for a percentage of 85.7%. Iowa was called for 14 fouls in this game which took the Wildcats to the charity stripe for 14 shots. They turned it over 8 times, while getting 7 steals in this contest. The Wildcats recorded 15 defensive rebounds and 8 offensive rebounds totaling 23 for the matchup.

Boo Buie ended up being important for the Wildcats for the contest. He knocked down 6 out of 13 in this matchup giving him a field goal percentage of 46.2%, and tallied 3 rebounds. He earned 20 points in his 32 mins on the court and added 3 assists for this game.

Northwestern has a win-loss mark of 15-6 so far this year. The Wildcats are committing 16.2 fouls every game and they shoot 75.4% from the free throw line. They are dishing out assists 13.5 times per contest (171st in college basketball) and they turn the ball over 10.3 times per game. Northwestern has 1,467 points for the campaign (69.9 per contest) and they grab 36.1 rebounds per game. When it comes to offense, the Wildcats are hitting on 40.6% from the floor, which has them ranked 339th in college basketball.

The Wildcats on the defensive side of the court are 24th in D-1 in PPG given up with 62.2. They are able to force 15.0 turnovers on a nightly basis and allow teams to shoot 40.1% from the field (33rd in D-1). The Northwestern defense gives up 35.0% on three-point shots (172 of 491) and opponents are making 68.6% of their shots from the free throw line. They have given up 13.3 dimes and 35.0 total boards per game, which has them ranked 227th and 245th in D-1.

So what is Tonights Parlay prediction?

Parlay's Pundit's Pick: Take Northwestern and under the total points

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