Minnesota vs Northwestern Odds and Picks
- The No. 12 seed Northwestern Wildcats (9-14, 6-13 Big Ten) take on the No. 13 seed Minnesota Golden Gophers (13-14, 6-14 Big Ten) in the first round of the Big Ten Conference Tournament on Wednesday, March 10
- The Gophers have lost seven in a row entering the postseason, while NU has won three straight
- Read below for odds, analysis, and best bet for this matchup
The No. 12 seed Northwestern Wildcats (9-14, 6-13 Big Ten), winners of three straight to close out the regular season, take on the No. 13 seed Minnesota Golden Gophers (13-14, 6-14 Big Ten) in the first round of the Big Ten Conference Tournament Wednesday, March 10 in Indianapolis. Tip is set for 6:30 pm ET at Lucas Oil Stadium
To say the Golden Gophers are limping into the conference tourney would be a massive understatement. A team that started the season 11-0 at home lost its final three at The Barn, including a 67-59 defeat at the hands of the Wildcats Feb. 25. Meantime, Northwestern enters Indy with a semblance of momentum. Chris Collins’ club had a disastrous 13-game losing streak, but snapped out of the epic funk to win its final three games of the season.
Northwestern is a slight favorite on Wednesday. Remember, this is a Minnesota squad that has not won away from the Twin Cities all season.
Minnesota vs Northwestern Odds
| Team | Spread | Moneyline | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota | +2 (-110) | Off | O 141.5 (-116) |
| Northwestern | -2 (-110) | Off | U 141.5 (-106) |
Odds as of March 9 at FanDuel.
Free Fallin’
Minnesota point guard Marcus Carr, who has NBA aspirations beyond this season, scored just seven points on 1-for-13 shooting, including 1-for-8 from three-point range, in Saturday’s 77-70 overtime loss at Williams Arena. The junior’s performance was a microcosm of what the last three weeks have been like for the Golden Gopher program.
The team’s leading scorer (19.6 points per game) and assist man (4.9 dimes per outing) has had to shoulder an even bigger load of late due to a spat of devastating injuries. Starting center Liam Robbins has missed four straight games with an ankle injury, while lockdown perimeter defender Gabe Kalscheur has missed six straight with a broken finger. There’s a slight chance both will be available Wednesday, but it seems unlikely.
I respect Richard Pitino's honesty here. Would be much easier to cover these moments if more coaches, ADs and presidents would be this transparent. https://t.co/qBUI8jmHuu
— Myron Medcalf (@MedcalfByESPN) March 9, 2021
Then, there’s the spectre of head coach Richard Pitino’s future. Barring a miraculous run at Lucas Oil — without two key players — this appears to be the end of line for Pitino as the Gophers head coach. The 38-year-old has guided the program to a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances (2017 and 2019) over his time in Minny. But the writing appears to be on the wall that a change is imminent.
The uncertainty about Robbins’ and Kalscheur’s status — along with Carr’s increased workload and Pitino’s looming demise as head coach — will certainly play a factor in how the Gophers play against the ‘Cats Wednesday.
‘Cat Scratch Fever
Northwestern got a putback bucket with 42 seconds remaining from Ryan Young and made it stand up in a narrow 79-78 victory over Nebraska in its regular-season finale Sunday.
Two words: Ryan Young
Two more: Game Winner#GoCats | #PoundTheRock pic.twitter.com/ne4old1Ht8
— Northwestern Basketball (@NUMensBball) March 7, 2021
The team’s leading scorer, Chase Audige, paced a balanced attack with a team-high 14 points for the ‘Cats, while a group of five other players all registered double-digit point totals. The six players scoring at least 10 in a conference game was the first time that had happened since the 2002-03 season. Northwestern shot 53%, including 11 of 25 behind the arc.
Wednesday’s game will almost certainly boil down to the backcourt. If Boo Buie can outshine Carr, as was the case in last month’s matchup when Buie had a game-high 25 compared to Carr’s 21 (on 5-of-17 shooting from the field), Northwestern will be primed to advance — where it would face No. 5 seed Ohio State on Thursday in the second round.
The Matchup
The Gophers rank last in the Big Ten and 340th nationally in three-point percentage at 28.6%. But the lack of success hasn’t deterred Pitino’s charges to keep hoisting shots from distance, as the Gophers’ 678 threes attempted ranks second behind only Iowa (689) in the Big Ten this season and is third-most in program history.
Minnesota had that short-memory mindset the last time it faced Northwestern, and it didn’t work.
The Gophers established the post with senior Brandon Johnson early, but Northwestern’s zone defense dared shots from the outside. Minnesota took the bait, winding up with a horrid 4-for-27 performance from three-point range.
Johnson played through ankle issues Saturday against Rutgers, finishing with 19 points and 11 rebounds. But will Pitino stick with feeding the post — or allow his perimeter players to be the mad bombers they are? The answer will likely determine the winner. At this point, I trust Collins and the overall health of his roster (from both a mental and physical standpoint) more than Minnesota’s.
The pick: Northwestern -2 (-110)
Blair Johnson is a veteran journalist and seasoned sports content creator. He has been writing and producing content as long as he can remember, with such familiar names as CNN, NFL Media and Yahoo. Blair currently lives and works in the greater Los Angeles area.
