Wisconsin vs Minnesota 1/30/22 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds
Minnesota Golden Gophers (11-6) vs. Wisconsin Badgers (16-3)
January 30, 2022 1:00 pm EDT
The Line: Wisconsin Badgers +9 ; Over/Under: 135
(Get latest betting odds)
The Minnesota Golden Gophers and the Wisconsin Badgers meet Sunday in college basketball action from Kohl Center. Minnesota is currently 11-6 on the year. The Gophers lost to Ohio State in their last game. As for Wisconsin, they’re sitting at 16-3 and took out Nebraska in their last outing. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.
Minnesota got off to a solid 10-1 start this year with only a loss to Michigan State. The Gophers have hit a 1-5 stretch since then, though. The losses in that time have come versus Illinois, Indiana, Michigan State, Iowa and Ohio State.
In the Ohio State matchup on Thursday, the Gophers were down by just two points heading into the break. Minnesota was outscored 43-34 from there in a 75-64 loss, though. Tops in scoring was Jamison Battle with 15 points and six boards.
Over on the Wisconsin side, their first 10 games featured an 8-2 run with losses to Providence and Ohio State. The Badgers would then hit a seven-game winning streak from December 15 to January 18. The last two games have been a loss to Michigan State and a win over Nebraska.
In Thursday’s matchup versus Nebraska, Wisconsin posted 39 points in the first half and 34 more in the second on the way to a 73-65 win. Brad Davidson topped the team on 21 points and seven boards, while Tyler Wahl added 10 rebounds and four points.
The Badgers are 5-2 ATS in their last seven overall and 9-3 ATS in their last 12 Sunday games. The over is 19-7 in Wisconsin’s last 26 overall.
Meanwhile, the Gophers are 6-2 ATS in their last eight road games and 2-5-1 ATS in their last eight overall. The over is 5-0 in Minnesota’s last five overall.
PICK: I’m going to try Wisconsin here, but probably staying away. Messing with Big Ten games these days is a dicey proposition. In any case, the Badgers have managed to hit 70 or more points in every game during this 8-1 run so their offense is working quite well right now. Wisconsin has given up some pretty healthy doses of points on the other side, though: 68 or more in nine of their last 10 games.
Minnesota may be able to take advantage of that permissive defense and turn this one into a high-scoring affair. Ultimately I like Wisconsin to power out the cover, but the Gophers seem a reasonable play as well. Should be a fun matchup.
