Texas Southern vs Michigan East Region Picks: Tigers Ready to Claw and Fight

The No. 1 Michigan Wolverines open NCAA Tournament play against the No. 16 Texas Southern Tigers in the East Region on Saturday.

Texas Southern used a strong second-half showing to advance past Mount Saint Mary’s in the First Four play-in game Thursday. The Wolverines haven’t played since a March 13 loss in the Big Ten Tournament and hope the hiatus in action can help them overcome a bad end to the season (2-3 SU/ATS last five games).

These are our free March Madness picks and predictions for Texas Southern vs. Michigan in the Round of 64.

Texas Southern vs Michigan odds

Sharp money and line movement report

By Patrick Everson

A couple of hours before tipoff Saturday, Michigan is a 25-point favorite at DraftKings, which opened the Wolverines -27. Texas Southern is a public underdog today, attracting 73 percent of spread bets and 75 percent of spread money. The total opened at 140, peaked at 143 and is now 141, with 57 percent of bets on the Under and 52 percent of money on the Over.

Check out the full line movement for this game

Texas Southern Tigers vs Michigan Wolverines betting preview

Injuries

Texas Southern: None.
Michigan: Isaiah Livers F (Out).

Find our latest NCAA basketball injury reports.

Betting trend to know

The Under is 6-1 in Wolverines’ last seven games as favorites. Find more NCAA betting trends for Texas Southern vs. Michigan.

Against the spread (ATS) pick

The Tigers looked primed for an early exit after falling behind to Mount Saint Mary’s early into their First Four matchup. Texas Southern was getting sucked into the Mountaineers’ methodical pace but broke free in the second half, speeding up the game not with offense but on defense.

The Tigers turned up the intensity with full-court pressure and active switching on screens, forcing The Mount to play faster than it liked. That swing in tempo manifested itself into a 40-22 second-half edge for the Tigers.

Michigan presents a much taller task on defense for Texas Southern in the Round of 64 NCAA Tournament. The Wolverines are fantastic at protecting the rim, holding foes to just 39 percent shooting from the field this season and boasting a +2.3 effective height metric at KenPom.com (9th), which means those bigs block and clean the glass with efficiency.

As for Michigan’s offense, however, it hasn’t been firing on all cylinders down the stretch, with the team averaging 66.4 points on 42.8 percent shooting in its last five games. Isaiah Livers is a big chunk of offense gone MIA, averaging almost 14 points and two assists per contest before getting hurt in the regular-season finale.

The Wolverines, who enter with the fourth-best March Madness odds to win the tournament, know there’s a storm coming in the Round of 32 (potentially LSU) and beyond, so Juwan Howard could get cautious in the second half and start yanking his starters to protect and conserve for Monday. Texas Southern will throw the kitchen sink at UM on defense and has already shaken out those Big Dance nerves.

PREDICTION: Texas Southern +26 (-110)

Over/Under pick

The Tigers rely on getting to the bucket, with almost 48 percent of their field goal attempts coming at the rim (ranking sixth). They’ll have a tough time cracking the Wolverines’ beefy interior – even with Livers out of action. The Wolverines check their foes to only 27.8 percent of their shots at the rim – 14th lowest in the land.

Texas Southern is also dependent on offensive rebounds for second-chance looks, grabbing more than 10 per game and snatching 11 rebounds on the offensive glass in the win over Mount Saint Mary’s. Michigan, however, allows only 7.5 offensive boards per contest and boasts a defensive rebound rate of 78.4 percent (30th).

As noted above, the Wolverines haven’t been scoring at the same pace as earlier in the year and run into a solid Texas Southern team that limits opponents to just over 40 percent success from outside and has played Under the total in three of its four postseason games (SWAC and NCAA), including Thursday’s 60-52 win staying well below the 134-point number.

PREDICTION: Under 142.5 (-110)

Team prop pick

Michigan has the horses to make up for Livers’ contributions on the offensive side of the ball, with Howard utilizing reserve guard Chaundee Brown. Brown played 28 minutes off the bench versus Maryland and 23 minutes against Michigan in the Big Ten Tournament.

Digging into the bench, which doesn’t run that deep to begin with, has to be a concern of coach Howard’s during the tournament format, so expect a very calculated and measured offensive approach to Saturday’s Round of 64 game, especially if the Wolverines put some space between them and the Tigers.

Texas Southern will want to push the tempo and get Michigan on its heels, but the Wolverines won’t be baited. Michigan stayed Under the total in its matchups with up-tempo Big Ten foes (going 0-4 O/U vs. Illinois, Nebraska, Minnesota) and stayed below 83.5 points in each of those contests.

PREDICTION: Michigan team total Under 83.5 (-110)

Texas Southern vs Michigan betting card

• Texas Southern +26 (-110)
• Under 142.5 (-110)
• Michigan team total Under 83.5 (-110)

Where can I bet on March Madness odds?

March Madness is one of the most popular times of the year for sports bettors, which of course makes it one of the busiest times of the year for online sportsbooks. Every betting site will offer March Madness odds but the top sites are safe and secure, offer a wide range of banking options, and give you a ton of markets for each game. Check out the best March Madness betting sites in your region.

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