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The Western Michigan Broncos take on the Wisconsin Badgers. Check out our college basketball odds series for our Western Michigan Wisconsin prediction and pick.
The Wisconsin Badgers might have sorted out their problems and dealt with their deficiencies, but we can't know for sure. Wisconsin has a 9-2 record, but a recent win over Iowa doesn't look nearly as good now as it did when it happened. Iowa has crashed, losing to Eastern Illinois by nine points at home (in a game it was favored to win by 31.5 points) and then getting sandblasted by Nebraska. The win over Marquette in overtime looks better, but the five-point win over Maryland looks worse, given that Maryland no-showed against UCLA after the Terps' loss to the Badgers. Wisconsin played a ton of close games in November and early December, beating Dayton by one point and losing at home to Wake Forest by three. The margins have been so small for the Badgers that it's hard to know where they stand in late December. Coach Greg Gard has a team with plenty of potential, but the pieces haven't fully come together, at least not yet. A lot of college basketball analysts need to see more from Wisconsin before upgrading this team in various projections for the remainder of the season.
Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Western Michigan-Wisconsin College Basketball odds.
College Basketball Odds: Western Michigan-Wisconsin Odds
Western Michigan Broncos: +20.5 (-110)
Wisconsin Badgers: -20.5 (-110)
Over: 125.5 (-110)
Under: 125.5 (-110)
Why Western Michigan Could Cover the Spread
The Wisconsin Badgers have played close to the edge on a lot of occasions this season. Against Kansas, Dayton, Wake Forest, Maryland, Iowa, Marquette, and USC, Wisconsin played a game decided by five points or fewer. Even in comparatively more “lopsided” wins, Wisconsin didn't score more than 60 points (against Green Bay and Stanford). Wisconsin is a team which does more with less, but that's not the same thing as having a high ceiling. It's more a case of Wisconsin having a high floor. The team doesn't sink that far even when things are bad, but it's harder to rise to an elite place. The Badgers are not a team which dominates opponents and generally finds a way to roll up huge margins of victory.
Wisconsin probably won't score enough to run away with this game. Also keep in mind that the MAC beat the Big Ten on the road earlier this week when Central Michigan won on the road at Michigan. A 20.5-point spread seems very large here.
Why Wisconsin Could Cover the Spread
The Badgers are going to demolish Western Michigan, in spite of their limitations, because Western Michigan just isn't very good. The Broncos have lost eight games so far this season. They have lost to Illinois Chicago, Valparaiso, Minnesota, Rice, Georgia Southern, and Cleveland State. This is not a hugely difficult schedule with top-tier opponents, and yet Western Michigan has largely failed to win games against these opponents. That's why Wisconsin can blow the doors off this game, not because of the Badgers in particular. This is a true cupcake game for Wisconsin.
Final Western Michigan-Wisconsin Prediction & Pick
This is a game to stay away from. Wisconsin is going to win, but whether the Badgers can score enough is always a question one has to ask, and it's hard to avoid that question here.
Final Western Michigan-Wisconsin Prediction & Pick: Wisconsin -20.5
