NFL Tickets
TV Schedule: Wednesday, Mar. 16, 9:10 pm ET, TruTV
Arena: University of Dayton Arena-Dayton, Ohio
Line: Michigan (-4), Vegas Insider.com
The last of the “First Four” NCAA tournament games for this year will feature two teams that were on the bubble on Selection Sunday. The Michigan Wolverines made it to a Big Ten tournament semifinal to bolster their case for a tournament bid, while the Tulsa Golden Hurricane bowed out in the quarterfinals of the American Athletic Conference tournament. The winner of Wednesday night’s game will become the No. 11 seed in the East Region and earn a date with No. 6 seed Notre Dame on Friday night.
What To Watch For: Michigan
A leg injury sidelined Caris LeVert for most of the conference schedule, but the Wolverines were able to stay afloat, win 22 games and earn a spot in the Big Dance. Zak Irvin stepped into lead role, and over the last nine games he has filled the stat sheet (14.0 points, 5.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game). Derrick Walton Jr. has also stepped up in LeVert’s absence, averaging 11.7 points, 5.6 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game so far this season, and he will be an important player for Michigan Wednesday night.
Two x-factors for the Wolverines are guards Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman and Duncan Robinson. Abdur-Rahkman has scored in double figures in four straight games, and six of the last seven contests, and while he doesn’t contribute a lot in other areas his scoring punch will be important during Wednesday night’s game. Robinson has been up-and-down as a perimeter shooter lately, but if he can do what he did against Northwestern in the conference tournament (4-for-6 from beyond the arc, 21 points) Tulsa may not have an answer.
What To Watch For: Tulsa
Tulsa’s inclusion in the field of 68 came with some controversy, especially after a blowout loss to Memphis last Friday night. The Golden Hurricane are also clearly led by their backcourt, with James Woodard (15.6 points per game), Shaquille Harrison (14.8 points per game) and Pat Birt (12.4 points per game) the only three players on the team averaging more than eight points per contest this season.
A potential x-factor for Tulsa is sophomore guard Marquel Curtis. Before struggling over the last two games, he had scored in double figures in four of the previous five games while averaging 6.2 rebounds per game over that span. If he can produce on that level again Wednesday night, the Golden Hurricane will benefit.
This game will be won with guard play, as is often the case in the NCAA tournament.
Prediction: Michigan 66, Tulsa 60
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