Michigan vs Pittsburgh – The Betting Preview
The Goldsheet provides their Michigan vs Pittsburgh betting preview as part of the Legends Classic coming from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. This will be Michigan’s second straight neutral court game playing only one home game so far this season.
Check out our College Basketball Free Picks page for betting thoughts from some of the country’s top handicappers.
Michigan vs Pittsburgh Betting Odds
Wednesday, November 16 | College Basketball Betting Notes |
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Point Spread: | Michigan Wolverines -9.5 vs Pittsburgh Panthers |
Total: | 140 Points |
Game Time: | 6:00pm ET / 3:00pm PT |
Arena: | Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY (Odds Above by DraftKings) |
TV: | ESPNU |
Michigan vs Pittsburgh Analysis
The Champions Classic in Indianapolis provided two fantastic games on Tuesday night. What can we expect out of the Legends Classic in Brooklyn tonight? The GoldSheet shares some thoughts on Wednesday’s Michigan vs Pitt battle at the Barclays Center.
The Wolverines have opened as a 9.5-point favorite over the Panthers with the total sitting at 140.5 points.
No. 20 Michigan enters the contest 2-0 with wins over Fort Wayne and Eastern Michigan, but that neutral site contest with the Eagles certainly raised some eyebrows as EMU led for most of that contest before the Wolverines escaped with an 88-83 victory.
Panthers Can’t Protect Ball
Enthusiasm within the Oakland Zoo has already been diminished as the Panthers dropped their last game by 25 at home to West Virginia. Jeff Capel is just 51-69 in four years at the helm in Pittsburgh and can’t’ afford too many more losses like that, or else he’ll find himself back in the Duke assistant coach rotation.
Capel was short-handed in that contest with the Mountaineers as rugged 6-9 PF John Hugley IV was out with a knee injury. His status for tonight’s contest is uncertain, but even if he plays, he figures to be limited in minutes.
The Panthers will need all the help that they can get while dealing with Michigan center Hunter Dickinson. The seven-footer opened the season with a 21-point, 12-rebound double-double against Fort Wayne and followed that up with a 31-point performance in 32 minutes against the Eagles.
Turnovers will likely be the key to this one. After two games, Pitt is turning the ball over on 23.3-percent of its possessions. You would expect a high-turnover game against West Virginia’s pressing defense, but the Panthers had 15 turnovers against Tennessee Martin. That’s concerning.
Michigan Has Much Experience on Neutral Court
Michigan already has some neutral court experience under its belt as Juwan Howard astutely scheduled that game with EMU at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit.
Those little details should help the Wolverines prep for this game, plus upcoming neutral site games against Kentucky and North Carolina later in the season.
Michigan vs Pittsburgh Prediction
Capel still has plenty of work to do in Pittsburgh as he looks to get Hugley IV into the lineup and navigate the eligibility status of prized recruit Dior Johnson.
Michigan received a nice punch in the mouth from Emoni Bates and EMU last week. That gave Coach Howard plenty to work with in practice leading into this contest. Lay the points with the Wolverines tonight.
Prediction: Michigan Wolverines -9.5
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College Basketball Stat Sheet
GoldSheet prepares a daily college basketball stat sheet, which offers a head-to-head comparison for how teams are performing in a number of key areas heading into a game. Check out Wednesday’s sheet, with notes on tonight’s Michigan vs Pittsburgh contest.
Happy Hour Tip-Off Show
Get your daily fix of college hoops betting information with Joe Raineri and a rotating panel of handicapping guests.
The Happy Hour Tip-Off Show will broadcast Monday through Friday at 1:45pm ET / 10:45am PT. Pull up a barstool and join us as we break down tonight’s college basketball card, including this Michigan vs Pittsburgh clash, from a sports betting perspective.
College Basketball Odds Screen
Sportsmemo’s live odds screen features up-to-the-minute lines from a variety of offshore and domestic sports books.
Track the college basketball point spreads, moneylines, first half lines and betting percentages for all of Friday’s college basketball games, including this Michigan vs Pittsburgh showdown, from your desktop or phone.
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