Michigan State (23-5) vs Wisconsin (22-6)
March 2, 2025 at 01:30 PM EST
The Line: Betting Odds: Michigan State -4.5 — Over/Under:
The Wisconsin Badgers and the Michigan State Spartans meet Sunday in college basketball action from Breslin Center. Here’s a Wisconsin vs Michigan State prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Wisconsin vs Michigan State pick. We will examine:
The Wisconsin Badgers recent form and player performance
The Michigan State Spartans recent form and player performance
Recent betting trends and streaks involving the Wisconsin Badgers
Recent betting trends and streaks involving the Michigan State Spartans
Recent betting trends in games played between Wisconsin and Michigan State
A summary that ties it all together and produces a favorable betting outcome for the Wisconsin vs Michigan State game
Wisconsin Badgers Betting Preview
The Badgers have only had a couple of (brief) spotty runs so far this year. Otherwise it’s been a great campaign. Wisconsin opened on an 8-0 record before losses to Michigan, Marquette and Illinois. Next came wins over Butler, Detroit, Iowa, Rutgers, Minnesota, Ohio State and USC, then losses versus UCLA and Maryland in the next three games. Since then it’s been a 6-1 run with a loss to Oregon among wins over Northwestern, Indiana, Iowa, Purdue, Illinois and Washington. That gives the Badgers a 22-6 overall record through 28 games so far this year.
In the Tuesday matchup versus Washington, the Badgers were looking good on a 43-28 first-half run. Wisconsin cruised from there with a 45-34 second and took the win 88-62 in blowout fashion. John Blackwell led the team on a double-double with 24 points and 10 rebounds, while John Tonje had 13 points with five boards. Xavier Amos led the bench with 12 points and two rebounds as well.
Michigan State Spartans Betting Preview
Over on the Spartans’ side, they had one rough four-game stretch last month but other than that they’re doing extremely well also. Michigan State lost to Kansas and Memphis in their first seven outings, then beat North Carolina, Minnesota, Nebraska, Oakland, FAU, Western Michigan, Ohio State, Washington, Northwestern, Penn State, Illinois, Rutgers and Minnesota from there. After a 1-3 run that featured losses to USC, UCLA and Indiana, Michigan State recovered with wins over Illinois, Purdue, Michigan and Maryland in the next four. That gives the Spartans a 23-5 record across the first 28 games of the year.
In the Maryland road matchup on Wednesday, the Spartans started slowly on a 23-21 deficit. Michigan State got better in the second half on a 37-32 run and took the comeback win 58-55 in the end. Tops in scoring (and the only player on the team to finish in double-figures) was Jase Richardson with 15 points, eight boards and one assist in 34 minutes. Tre Holloman led the bench scoring with nine points and three assists in 20 minutes.
Why the Michigan State Spartans will win
- Michigan State has won 19 of its last 20 games at Jack Breslin Student Events Center when playing with a rest disadvantage.
- Wisconsin has lost 14 of its last 18 day games against AP-ranked opponents.
- The home team has won the first half in each of Michigan State’s last four games.
Why the Wisconsin Badgers will win
- Wisconsin has won each of its last four road day games against the Big Ten Conference.
- Wisconsin has won the first half in each of its last three games against Conference opponents.
Wisconsin vs Michigan State Prediction
I’m going to stay with Michigan State. You could argue this one either way, though; we should have a fun matchup here. The Spartans weren’t exactly overwhelming in their latest win over a good Maryland team, shooting just 33.8 percent from the field with 12 turnovers. Michigan State held the Terrapins to just 31.3 percent on the other side however, and had a 45-33 rebounding advantage. Still, the 58 points were the Spartans’ lowest total of the season. They’d posted 75 or more in three straight prior to that. Michigan State’s win streak stands at four.
As for Wisconsin, they demolished a middling Washington team in their last matchup. The 51.6 percent shooting from the field and 41-26 rebounding edge helped guide the victory. The Badgers have scored quite well themselves during this 6-1 stretch, with 74 or more points in every win. I like this matchup to finish with a pretty high total, with both teams shooting well. In the end however, I like Michigan State to power out the cover at home.