Sweet 16: Oregon Slight Underdog to Michigan
The fans at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri will see the Michigan Wolverines and the Oregon Ducks when tangle on Thursday.
Michigan’s run through the Big Ten tournament has been well-chronicled. It started with the teams plane sliding off the runway on the way to the event. The No. 7 seed Wolverines are not a fairy-tale story like some would have you believe. They earned their way to the Sweet 16 with gutsy victories over Oklahoma State and the Louisville Cardinals in the NCAA Tournament.
Oddsmakers opened the Wolverines as 0-point favorites versus the Ducks, while the game’s total opened at 146.5. Michigan has inched ahead as a 1-point favorite while the total is at 147.5.
Oregon was a 75-72 winner in their NCAA Round of 32 matchup against the Rhode Island Rams. They failed to cover the -4.5-point spread as favorites. Forward Dillon Brooks is the Ducks’ leading scorer at 16.4 points per game. He shot only 7 of 20 against Rhode Island but still scored 19 points. Oregon lost center Chris Boucher to a season-ending injury in the Pac-12 Conference tournament. The injury has forced Oregon to play small. Brooks (6-foot-7) and Jordan Bell (6-9) make up the frontcourt. Guard Tyler Dorsey has recorded four straight games over 20 points, including 27 against the Rams.
Michigan was a 73-69 winner in its 2nd round matchup against the Louisville Cardinals. They covered the +3-point spread as underdogs. Michigan is a well-balanced team, and has been all year. The Wolverines have four players averaging between 11.0 and 15.4 points. Those same four players are leading the team in rebounding as well.
