The NCAA Tournament has finally arrived for the Michigan basketball team. The top-seeded Wolverines will take on 16th-seeded Howard in Buffalo on Thursday night.
Tip-off time between Michigan and Howard is set for 7:10 PM EST on CBS. The Wolverines are listed as a 30.5-point underdog on the MEAC champions, who defeated UMBC on Tuesday.
Howard is obviously facing a David vs. Goliath kind of game. The Bison have only played two power-conference opponents, this season, losing lopsided games against Northwestern and Duke.
If there is one concern for Michigan, it is taking care of the ball. Howard is one of the best teams in college basketball at forcing turnovers. That's one weakness the Wolverines have on offense. Michigan should cruise to victory, but turnovers are one thing that could keep it closer than expected.
Michigan vs. Howard announcers and more
As far as the CBS Sports broadcast team, the Wolverines will have Jason Benetti (play-by-play), Jim Jackson (analyst), and Allie LaForce (sideline) on the call.
Michigan is the No. 3 overall seed in the 2026 NCAA tournament. The Big Ten regular season champions come in with a record of 31-3. The Bison are 21-10. They made 10 3-pointers in the win on Tuesday, shooting 48 percent from beyond the arc.
Bryce Harris is the top scorer for Howard with over 17 points per game. He scored 19 on Tuesday. Ose Okojie added 23 points. He was 3-for-3 from beyond the arc.
However, the talent gap is too big, and so is the size gap. It's hard to see Howard matching up with Michigan in any real way down low. As long as something catastrophic doesn't happen, the Wolverines should win and cover the 30.5-point spread.