Dean Etheridge
The Michigan Wolverines are in action against number one ranked Purdue Boilermakers tonight, and here we look ahead to the action in our latest free NCAAB betting picks.
- What; NCAAB
- Who; Michigan Wolverines vs Purdue Boilermakers
- Where; Crisler Center, Ann Arbor, Michigan
- When; Thursday, January 26th, 2023
- Start Time; 9 pm ET
Michigan will be looking to make it two wins in a row when they face Purdue. The Boilermakers will be looking for their seventh consecutive win. Their Big Ten clash on Thursday night is the first time the two sides have met this season, and for Michigan it represents a great chance to end an awful run of results against Purdue over recent seasons.
Overall, Purdue has a 25-2 record against the Wolverines, and this includes a current winning streak of 12, dating all the way back to 1997. The last time the two teams met was in the 2019 Big Ten/ACC Challenge. The match ended 58-43 to Purdue.
Betting to win the 2023 NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship
Despite being ranked number one, Purdue are still way behind the Houston Cougars in the latest betting to win the NCAA Basketball Men’s Championship. The Cougars are still as short as +650 to win the championship, with Purdue down at +1000 or +1100, depending on which of the best college basketball betting sites you are wagering with.
Separating Houston and Purdue in the betting is the Alabama Crimson Tide who have been on an astonishing run of form of late. The Crimson Tide has won their last eight (at the time of writing), and are now second favorites at +900 to win the championship this year.
Kansas are also in the mix at +1000, as are UCLA (+1200), Tennessee (+1400), and Arizona (+1400). More betting can be found below in our helpful odds table.
| NCAAB Tournament Winner Betting 2023 |  |  |  |
| Houston Cougars | +650 | +650 | +650 |
| Alabama | +900 | +1000 | +900 |
| Purdue | +1100 | +1000 | +1100 |
| Kansas | +1000 | +1100 | +1100 |
| UCLA | +1200 | +1200 | +1200 |
| Tennessee | +1400 | +1400 | +1400 |
| Arizona | +1400 | +1400 | +1400 |
| Virginia | +2200 | +2200 | +2200 |
| Connecticut | +2200 | +2000 | +2000 |
| Texas | +2500 | +2500 | +2500 |
| Gonzaga | +2500 | +3000 | +2800 |
| Creighton | +3300 | +3300 | +3300 |
| Kansas State | +2800 | +2800 | +2800 |
| North Carolina | +3300 | +3300 | +3300 |
| TCU | +3500 | +3500 | +3500 |
Inconsistent Michigan will need a big improvement to test Purdue
The Wolverines won on their last outing, a 60-56 home win over Minnesota last weekend. By way of comparison, Minnesota’s match before they played the Wolverines was a 61-39 home defeat to Purdue last Thursday – a pretty one-sided match.
Michigan’s showing against Minnesota was nothing of the sort. The two sides were level at 23 points each at the half-way point, and only a strong finish from the Wolverines eventually saw off a plucky Minnesota side by four points.
Picked up the W.@H_Dickinson24: 23P/9R/1B@kb33zy_04: 12P/4R/1A/2S@AyooFlyy: 10P/8R/3A/1S
〽️🏀 | #ForCompetitorsOnly#GoBlue pic.twitter.com/MumKPSX9F2
— Michigan Men's Basketball (@umichbball) January 22, 2023
And it was a much needed win for the Wolverines as well. In their match prior to the Minnesota win, they were beaten by Maryland.
All-in-all it’s not been a great season for the Wolverines. In their last five matches they have lost three of them. And the defeats came at the hands of MI State (59-53), Iowa (93-84), and Maryland (64-58), not top ranked sides. They sit third in the Big Ten, and their overall record is 11-8.
Such form doesn’t inspire confidence in anybody thinking they are worth a wager to beat the Boilermakers.
Purdue on a hot streak
The form of number one ranked Purdue couldn’t be starker compared to that of Michigan. The Boilermakers sit at the top of the Big Ten table and are on a winning streak of six.
💥💥💥💥💥 FINAL
Never easy in this league, but found a way!
Zach Edey with 24 points, 16 rebounds and 2 blocks.
19-1 overall and 8-1 in the Big Ten. pic.twitter.com/omOia7UtZF
— Purdue Men's Basketball (@BoilerBall) January 22, 2023
Their most recent victory was a 58-55 win over Maryland, which when compared with some recent results, might be classed as a closer match than expected. The Boilermakers were 35-21 up at the half-way point, and it would be fair to say they eased off somewhat in the second period.
This was maybe down to tiredness. Or they could have been saving their legs for tonight’s match.
Overall this season, Purdue has a 19-1 record. The defeat came at the hands of Rutgers, a one point defeat (65-64) earlier this month. Prior to that loss, the Boilermakers were on a winning streak of 13.
It is noticeable that some of their recent wins have perhaps been a bit tighter than would be expected. As well as the three points win over Maryland, they also only defeated MI State by one point (64-63) just over a week ago. And they also required a second period fightback to defeat Ohio State by just two points (71-69) in the match immediately after the Rutgers’ loss.
Michigan vs Purdue Betting and Picks
In the betting to win the match the best March Madness betting sites are giving Michigan +5.5 points on the handicap. Purdue is starting from -5.5 points. Both sides are -110 with Bovada.
On the total points spread, the mark is 136 total points, again, Bovada are -110 for over 136, and -110 for under 136. If you want to know more about Bovada, please check out our Bovada sportsbook review.
Onto our NCAAB betting picks, and in three of Purdue’s last five matches they’ve won by 6 points or more. Despite a couple of close finishes in those five games, I still believe it makes more sense to back Purdue to beat the spread than not. Therefore Purdue to win on the handicap is my betting pick.
In the total points market I feel it will be under 136. Four out of Purdue’s last five matches have had under 136 points, and the same has happened with Michigan in three of their last five outings.
Use the following top sportsbooks to place these bets and more!
