The Indiana Hoosiers visit the Wisconsin Badgers tonight with a chance to notch an important resume-building win against the No. 11 team in the nation. The Badgers sit alone in first place, but an Indiana win would draw them within one game of Wisconsin at the top of the conference. Indiana has been up and down since the start of conference play, but a win over the Badgers could get their season going in the right direction.
Indiana is 8-10 ATS on the season but has covered four of their last seven. The Hoosiers have also tightened things up on defense, with their games hitting the UNDER in three of their last four. The Badgers had a difficult start, losing two of their first three contests. Wisconsin has gone 12-2 since then and only lost one Big Ten game earlier this week against Penn State (83-87). The Badgers have a 10-7 ATS record but have been at their best recently, winning outright and covering the spread in five of their last six.
Here is the latest Indiana vs. Wisconsin betting news, player props and a betting prediction as the Badgers try to hold on to first place. The game tips off at 8:30 p.m. on FS1.
Live odds for Indiana vs. Wisconsin
Here are the spread, moneyline and total points live odds for Indiana vs. Wisconsin at the best online sportsbooks.
More college hoops betting: College Basketball Odds: NCAAB Betting Lines, Spreads and Futures | March Madness Betting Sites
Indiana Hoosiers betting news
Indiana has a high ceiling as a team with the talent assembled, but inconsistency has hurt them. One excuse for the inconsistency was the injury to Xavier Johnson, who missed all of December. The Hoosiers are 2-3 since the senior guard returned, but it is noteworthy that one of those two wins came when Johnson had 18 points. When Johnson scores at least nine points, Indiana is 5-0.
The Hoosiers have one of the best frontcourt groups in the nation, with Malik Reneau (15.8 PPG), Kel'el Ware (14.2 PPG) and Mackenzie Mgabako (10.4 PPG) all averaging double digits. When games are in crunch time, though, Indiana struggles to get them the ball. The other top guard outside of Johnson is Trey Galloway, who is third on the team in scoring (10.7 PPG) and the leader in assists (4 APG). Galloway has six games with six or more assists, and Indiana has not lost any of those contests.
Advanced metrics are not great for the Hoosiers; they rank 125th for adjusted offensive efficiency and 72nd for adjusted defensive efficiency on Kenpom. Indiana does have the 42nd-ranked strength of schedule, making their matchup with Wisconsin challenging, but nothing they haven't had to face this season. To pull off the upset win on the road, they need scoring from Xavier Johnson and for Trey Galloway to distribute the ball effectively.
Wisconsin Badgers betting news
The Badgers have exceeded expectations this season, especially after losing two of their first three contests. Since that time, they have won all but two games and put on some impressive performances. They have beaten teams like Virginia (65-41), Marquette (75-64), Michigan State (70-57) and Iowa (83-72). Wisconsin's squad has been one of their best offensive groups for quite some time.
They rank sixth on Kenpom for adjusted offensive efficiency and are solid on the opposite side of the ball, ranking 39th for adjusted defensive efficiency. To rank sixth on offense is incredibly impressive, considering they play with a deliberately slow pace, a program staple, ranking 316th for adjusted tempo. They rank sixth for strength of schedule.
The Badgers have had a strong season with a balanced, team-centered approach. They do not have any top-100 scorers, but they have six players scoring at least eight points a game. Each of those players has season highs of 18 or more points. Defending the Badgers is tricky, as they can get a big night from any of their top six. Also, between their slow pace and solid defensive efforts, they only allow opponents 66.6 PPG.
Indiana vs. Wisconsin player props at FanDuel Sportsbook
FanDuel Sportsbook has excellent value props for the star players in this matchup. Check out the top players' current odds for the most popular player prop markets.
Malik Reneau player props
- 13.5 points OVER (-130) / UNDER (+100)
- 6.5 rebounds OVER (+118) / UNDER (-158)
- Threes: 1+ (-102)
Mackenzie Mgbako player props
- 11.5 points OVER (-108) / UNDER (-120)
- 3.5 assists OVER (-135) / UNDER (+105)
- Threes: 2+ (-102), 3+ (+265)
Tyler Wahl player props
- 12.5 points OVER (+102) / UNDER (-132)
- 6.5 rebounds OVER (+104) / UNDER (-138)
AJ Storr player props
- 16.5 points OVER (+100) / UNDER (-130)
- 5.5 rebounds OVER (-105) / UNDER (-120)
- Threes: 2+ (+104), 3+ (+290)
Steven Crowl player props
- 11.5 points OVER (-125) / UNDER (-104)
- 8.5 rebounds OVER (+116) / UNDER (-154)
- Threes: 1+ (-125)
Kel'el Ware player props
- 11.5 points OVER (-130) / UNDER (+100)
- 8.5 rebounds OVER (+102) / UNDER (-136)
- Threes: 1+ (+102)
Indiana vs. Wisconsin prediction: Badgers defend home court
Wisconsin has been the more consistent team. Indiana can pull off the upset, but Wisconsin will likely frustrate them with a slow pace and make getting the ball to the Hoosiers' frontcourt players difficult. That, along with a strong team scoring effort and home-court advantage, makes the Badgers likely to win comfortably.
Pick: Badgers
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