The Indiana Hoosiers take on the Michigan Wolverines. Check out our college basketball odds series for our Indiana Michigan prediction and pick. Find how to watch Indiana Michigan.

The Indiana Hoosiers have lost only one game this season. The Michigan Wolverines have lost four of their last five games. Michigan is favored by 7.5 points at home. That certainly raises eyebrows for any college basketball bettor. Let's dive into why that might be the case.

Michigan is playing at home and badly needs a win to put its losing ways to a halt. The Wolverines are trying to save their season. Indiana, at 6-1, doesn't feel that same level of urgency. Yet, Indiana has not been as good as its record might indicate. The Hoosiers allowed 80 points at home to Wright State. They were pushed by Harvard before pulling away late. They struggled a lot with Louisville before dominating the last three minutes to win that game. Michigan has challenged itself on the schedule by playing the Battle 4 Atlantis and away games at St. John's (which it won) and Oregon (which it narrowly lost in overtime). Also, Indiana guard Xavier Johnson, a critical part of the Hoosier lineup, is listed as questionable with an injury which forced him to miss last weekend's win over Maryland. You can try to put the various pieces together. Michigan might not be the better team in general, but a lot of the circumstances of this particular game on this particular night create the impression — at least in terms of the betting markets — that Michigan should be installed as a solid favorite and is expected to win. We will see if Indiana can thwart the betting read on this game.

Here are the Indiana-Michigan College Basketball odds, courtesy of FanDuel.

College Basketball Odds: Indiana-Michigan Odds

Indiana Hoosiers: +7.5 (-115)

Michigan Wolverines: -7.5 (-105)

Over: 144.5 (-115)

Under: 144.5 (-105)

How To Watch Indiana vs Michigan

Time: 9:00 pm ET / 6:00 pm PT

TV: Peacock

Stream: fuboTV (click for a free trial)*

Why Indiana Could Cover the Spread

The Hoosiers are 6-1, playing a 4-4 opponent, and they're getting 7.5 points. Wow. That seems like a great play to make. Indiana just did beat Maryland over the past weekend, limiting the Terps to only 53 points. Indiana can certainly play good defense and, if nothing else, keep the game close enough to cover the spread. Does Michigan really deserve this much benefit of the doubt? The Wolverines have lost four of their last five games. Their one win in that five-game stretch came against a Stanford team whose coach, Jerod Haase, is on the hot seat and is likely to be fired next March. Even though Michigan is at home and even though Xavier Johnson's playing status is questionable, Michigan is not the kind of team where you — as a bettor — want to say that you have complete confidence it will take advantage of all of Indiana's limitations. There are much better teams which can fit that description and fulfill that task.

Why Michigan Could Cover the Spread

Xavier Johnson is central to what Indiana tries to do at both ends of the floor. If he cannot play or be effective in this game, Michigan — despite being 4-4 compared to Indiana's 6-1 — becomes a better team than the Hoosiers. That's the real and best reason to think Michigan will cover the spread despite having a much worse record through one month of play this season.

Final Indiana-Michigan Prediction & Pick

There are a lot of variables here, and the line is very curious, so it's a game worth staying away from.

Final Indiana-Michigan Prediction & Pick: Indiana +7.5