>The Michigan State Spartans have a forecast 72% chance to win against The Louisville Cardinals with a spread of -5.0/5.0 and an over/under of 137.0. The Michigan State Spartans are 0 – 0 against The Louisville Cardinals in the 2021-22 Season.
— Wednesday, December 01st Louisville Cardinals @ Michigan State Spartans
The final day of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge has six games on the schedule. One of the more intriguing games features unranked teams as the Louisville Cardinals (5-1) travel to face the Michigan State Spartans (5-2). Game time is set for 7:15 p.m. ET at the Breslin Center in East Lansing, Michigan, and the contest will air on ESPN.
These teams have played 11 times in their history, with Louisville leading the series 6-5. They last played in 2018 with a matchup in this same challenge, won by the Cardinals at home. Michigan State won at home in the 2015 challenge and haven’t lost at home to Louisville since 1995.
Louisville’s Defense Leads the Way
Louisville is 3-3 ATS this season, and the under is 4-2 in their six games. They won the Bahamas Championship last week with wins over Mississippi State and Maryland, holding both to under 60 points. The Cardinals lead the ACC in holding the opposition to 37.4 percent shooting from the floor.
The Cardinals seniors, Malik Williams, Noah Locke, and Jarrod West, have accounted for nearly 40 percent of the team’s points this season. Locke leads the way with 13 points per game and has hit on 35 percent of his 3-pointers this season.
Samuell Williamson averages 8.7 ppg and 6.2 rebounds per game, while Williams averages 8.0 ppg and 9.8 rpg. Louisville has spread out the scoring all season, with seven players scoring between 6.5 and 13.0 ppg.
Though their defense has been quality, the offense has struggled. The Cardinals rank 258th in the nation in shooting at 42.5 percent and 288th in 3-point shooting at 29.8 percent. They are in the bottom 100 in the nation in scoring at just over 70 points per game, and they haven’t gone over 77 yet this season.
Inconsistency From Michigan
The Spartans are 4-2-1 ATS this season, and the under is 5-2 in their seven games. They lost to Kansas by 13 and Baylor by 17 while beating ranked UConn by four. They also have wins over Butler and Loyola Chicago so far this season in what has been a challenging schedule.
Michigan State is 5-0 this season when holding opponents to 61 points or less and 0-2 when allowing more than 61. They rank 27th in the nation in FG defense, allowing just 37.6 percent on the season and 28.6 percent from deep.
Senior Gabe Brown leads the Spartans at 13.4 ppg, and Marcus Bingham Jr. is right behind him at 11 ppg. Bingham leads the team with 7.1 rpg while Tyson Walker and A.J. Hoggard both average four assists per game.
Brown has made 13 3-pointers on the season and shoots 36 percent beyond the arc. Max Christie and Malik Hall are a combined 13-for-39 from distance, while Walker and Joey Hauser have both knocked down five 3-pointers.
Betting Analysis
- Louisville Cardinals +4(-110). Money line +160
- Michigan State Spartans -4 (-110) Money line -190
- Total Points: 134.5 Over -105. Under -115
This game is all about defense as both teams can lock it down on that end of the floor. The Spartans have shot the ball better so far this season and are getting to the free-throw line more than 20 times a game. They will lean on their boisterous home crowd to notch an important win for the Big Ten in this series.
Betting Pick: Spartans -4 (-110)
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