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We will see ‘The Game’ extend to the hardwood on Monday night when the Michigan Wolverines travel to take on the Ohio State Buckeyes. These are both once proud programs that have fallen on hard times in recent years, but both are looking to get to the NCAA Tournament once again. Ohio State has a new coach in Chris Holtmann, who has this team playing well after a terribly disappointing end to the Thad Matta. Meanwhile, John Beilein has his work cut out for him this season after losing most of his talent off of last year’s NCAA Tournament team.
This war on the floor will go down Monday, December 4, 2017, at 6:30 p.m. ET at Value City Arena in Columbus, Ohio. The game will be televised live on Fox Sports 1. We'll have NCAA basketball odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game on the college basketball Monday schedule.
Opening College Basketball Odds at BookMaker.eu
Michigan is looking to get back on the court as soon as possible in order to erase the memory of what happened on Wednesday night. The Wolverines got pummeled by North Carolina in a game that wasn’t as close as the 15-point differential indicated. Michigan is 6-2 SU on the season, but just 3-4 ATS heading into this game.
The Buckeyes have a worse record, but have faced a tougher schedule. Ohio State is 5-3 and only has one quality win on its resume this year. The Buckeyes knocked off Stanford, but lost to Clemson, Butler, and Gonzaga in the past week and a half. They are 2-4 ATS on the season and their first five games went under the total prior to their tilt against Clemson.
Key Stat
The Wolverines have been one of the more efficient teams in college basketball this season. Michigan’s offense is in the top 50 in the country in field goal percentage, and the Wolverines have knocked down 49.1 percent of their shots this year. This isn’t just a reflection of the competition they have faced either. According to Ken Pomeroy, this is one of the top 30 offenses in the country when you control for quality of the opponent.
However, this offense is extremely deliberate and that can hurt when the Wolverines are playing a lesser foe. They play at a snail’s pace and try to work the ball around as much as possible in order to get the perfect shot. This can work out great, but has also explained why Michigan has been knocked off by lesser teams so many times over the years.
Player to Watch
Keita Bates-Diop has come on strong as a senior and has established himself as a strong rebounding forward who has range. Bates-Diop not only leads the team in rebounding with 9.9 rebounds per game, he is also one of the best three-point shooters on the team through the first month of the season. He is knocking down 42 percent of his shots from downtown this year and when you are averaging over five per game, that’s pretty impressive.
It’s been nice to have Bates-Diop back on the floor after he missed most of last season because of a stress fracture in his leg. He was only able to play six games and Ohio State certainly missed his size and versatility during last year’s disastrous campaign.
Free College Basketball ATS Picks
The hardwood rivalry between these two schools doesn’t have near the same intensity that the gridiron rivalry does. Still, you can be sure that Columbus will be rocking for this nationally televised game early in the season. Holtmann is looking to add as many big wins as he can and should be able to pick up the win here. Bates-Diop and Jae’Sean Tate are a tough duo to handle and that will hurt the Wolverines.
College Basketball Odds: Ohio State 74, Michigan 68
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