Michigan Basketball: 3 Predictions for Wolverines against Indiana

Who wins?

Handling the quick turnaround will be key for Michigan. You go from playing Thursday night to Saturday morning on the road against a team that’s struggling and human nature can set in.

However, this U-M squad has been extremely motivated all year and Juwan Howard has pushed all the right buttons. The Wolverines have a championship mentality and culture.

The defense is also elite and that more than anything, gives me confidence that Michigan basketball will be able to leave Bloomington with a win.

The Hoosiers aren’t a great shooting team and they depend on attacking the bucket to score, which isn’t a great way to attack the Wolverines, who lead the Big Ten in overall field-goal percentage defense and 2-point percentage defense. They also don’t foul often.

Dickinson will make life tough on Jackson-Davis, who scores 20 points a game but isn’t a huge threat as a perimeter shooter (zero 3-point attempts), meaning he needs to do most of his work inside.

The Hoosiers are actually the fifth-best 3-point shooting team in the Big Ten and have some shooters in Armaan Franklin, Ajami Durham and Jerome Hunter who each average over one make from deep per game.

However, Michigan is a master at forcing teams off the 3-point line and into tough 2-point attempts. Indiana wants to attack the rim and get fouled, but the Wolverines don’t foul often, so it’s just hard to see Indiana winning this one, although it could be close based on circumstance.

Final score: Michigan 77, Indiana 65