The Montana Grizzlies (+100,000 to win the national title) hope that their efficient offense will pass the test against the Michigan Wolverines (+1,800), who are the clear favorites in this first-round matchup. Will the Grizzlies make the Big Sky and every mid-major proud with a win over Michigan? Or will the Wolverines topple Montana and clinch a ticket to the next round?
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Betting Preview for the Montana Grizzlies vs. Michigan Wolverines College Basketball Game on March 21, 2019
Where: Wells Fargo Arena, Des Moines
When: Thursday, March 21, 2019, 9:15 PM ET
Line: Montana Grizzlies (+15.5) vs. Michigan Wolverines (-15.5) – view all NCAA Basketball lines
TV Broadcast: TNT
Betting on the Montana Grizzlies (26-8 Overall / 16-4 Conference)
For second time in a row, Montana is going dancing by way of an auto-bid, as the Grizzlies won the Big Sky Tournament. In the finals, they beat the Eastern Washington Eagles, 68-62. Montana managed to find a way to have its name in every March Madness bracket this year despite a season-ending knee injury to leading scorer Jamar Akoh last February, thanks in large part to the elevated play of Ahmaad Rorie. Rorie is putting up 14.8 points in the last 11 games. Against Eastern Washington, the senior guard had 11 points on 5-for-11 shooting from the field. He had 28 points in the semis in which Montana dumped Weber State Wildcats, 78-49. Montana is an extremely efficient team on offense, ranking sixth in the nation with a 56.7 effective field goal percentage. They can shoot the air out of the ball with a 49.3 percent shooting from behind the arc. They are the kind of team that when it gets hot can be hard to stop no matter the opponent’s seed.
Montana is 2-1-1 against the spread (ATS) in its last four games.
Betting on the Michigan Wolverines (28-6 Overall / 15-5 Conference)
Coming off a bitter loss to the Michigan State Spartans in the Big Ten title game, 65-60. Nevertheless, it’s good for Michigan to see Ignas Brazdeikis having a solid performance in the Spartans game, making 19 points with a 4-for-8 shooting from behind the arc. Brazdeikis leads the team with 15.1 points per game. He is a big threat around the perimeter, as he also shoots 42.0 percent from distance. It’s not his offense that makes the Wolverines go mostly though, but the team’s defense. Michigan was second in the regular season with just 58.6 points allowed per game. That kind of defense is going to be challenging even for a hot-shooting Montana team, which is used to pummeling weaker defenses in the Big Sky. Michigan has limited opposing teams to just 28.9 percent shooting from the outside and 39.98 percent from the floor. Michigan has won 16 of its past 21 games in March Madness.
The Wolverines are 4-2 ATS in their last six contests.
Writer’s Prediction
Michigan wins, 74-57.
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