The No. 10 Michigan State Spartans take on the Wisconsin Badgers in a Friday night Big Ten battle. The game tips off at 8:00 p.m. ET in Madison, Wisconsin.
The Spartans are listed as 2.5-point road favorites on DraftKings Sportsbook, with the total set at 145.5 points. Let’s dive into a full preview, prediction, and pick for this Big Ten showdown.
Wisconsin vs. Michigan State prediction, preview
The top five teams in the Big Ten are all ranked inside the top 13 in the country. The sixth team in the Big Ten standings is Wisconsin, who is unranked. The Badgers are the top team in the second tier of the conference, but have a chance to prove they belong with the big boys tonight. The Badgers have proven they can compete with the best. They delivered No. 2 Michigan its only loss of the season and are coming off an overtime win over No. 8 Illinois. The fantastic guard duo of Nick Boyd and John Blackwell averages a combined 38.9 points per game. This is a very good basketball team, and a win over Michigan State would definitely propel it into that top tier in the Big Ten.
Michigan State is also coming off an overtime win over No. 8 Illinois, having not played since last Saturday. Tom Izzo has a great team in East Lansing and is hoping to make one more Final Four run to add to his illustrious career. The Spartans are led by sophomore guard Jeremy Fears Jr., who has taken his game to another level over the past few weeks. Fears has scored at least 26 points in three of his past four games and is looking to keep that momentum going against Wisconsin. Michigan State is one of the best defensive teams in the country, ranking fourth nationally in defensive rating. It will try to slow this game down and make life hard for Wisconsin.
Wisconsin vs. Michigan State pick
This game will likely come down to who can dictate the tempo. Michigan State is elite on the defensive end of the floor and likes to play slow, ranking 268th in the nation in adjusted tempo. If they can force Wisconsin to run its half-court offense, the Spartans are confident that they can get stops. Wisconsin, meanwhile, will try to get out in transition and get shots up before Michigan State can get set up defensively. Wisconsin ranks 28th in the nation in offensive rating. The Badgers also shoot more three-pointers than any other team in the Big Ten, an average of 10 threes per game more than Michigan State shoots.
My best bet for this game is for Wisconsin to cover the short 2.5-point spread. The Badgers have risen to the occasion when facing the best teams in the conference, racking up wins over Michigan and Illinois. Wisconsin is 8-2 in its last 10 games, with one loss coming by one point against Indiana in overtime and the other coming by two points to USC. Wisconsin has not lost by more than two points since January 3 against Purdue. The Badgers should keep that amazing run going and cover this spread against Michigan State.
