Big Ten foes match up when No. 16 Ohio State (12-4) and Minnesota (11-5) play on Thursday night. On Jan. 18, Ohio State defeated IUPUI 83-37 to win its second straight contest. The Golden Gophers snapped their four-game losing streak and pulled out a 68-65 victory over Rutgers on Jan. 22.
Tipoff is at 8 p.m. ET from Williams Arena. The Buckeyes are favored by 6.5 points in the latest Ohio State vs. Minnesota odds from Caesars Sportsbook, while the over-under is 134.5. Before making any Minnesota vs. Ohio State picks, be sure to check out the college basketball predictions and betting advice from the SportsLine Projection Model.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every Division I college basketball game 10,000 times. It enters Week 12 of the season with a 49-36 record on all top-rated college basketball picks, returning almost $700. Over the past five-plus years, the proprietary computer model has generated an impressive profit of $2,800 for $100 players on its top-rated college basketball picks against the spread. Anyone who has followed it has seen huge returns.
Now, the model has set its sights on Ohio State vs. Minnesota, and just locked in its picks and CBB predictions. You can visit SportsLine now to see the model’s picks. Here are the college basketball odds and betting lines for Minnesota vs. Ohio State:
Ohio State vs. Minnesota spread: Ohio State -6.5Ohio State vs. Minnesota State over-under: 134.5 pointsOhio State vs. Minnesota money line: Ohio State -330, Minnesota +260OSU: Over is 4-0 in Buckeyes last four games as road favoritesMINN: Golden Gophers are 10-4 ATS in their last 14 Thursday games
Featured Game | Minnesota Golden Gophers vs. Ohio State Buckeyes
Why Ohio State can cover
The Buckeyes have been one of the top shooting teams in the Big Ten this season. Ohio State is second in the conference in field goal percentage (.483) and third in 3-point percentage (.380). There are five players on the team who shoot at least 35 percent from downtown. Junior forward E.J. Liddell is logging 19.4 points while shooting 40 percent from three.
Freshman guard Malaki Branham is second on the team in scoring with 10 points and is knocking down 38 percent of his 3-point attempts. He has scored over 20 points in two different games and his best outing came in the Jan. 2 win over Nebraska when Branham dropped 35 points with six rebounds. The Ohio native shot 13-for-19 from the field and 6-for-10 from three.
Why Minnesota can cover
The Golden Gophers were short-handed in their 68-65 win over Rutgers. Minnesota was without sophomore forward Jamison Battle and senior guard E.J. Stephens. Regardless they finished the game shooting 54 percent from the field and from 3-point range. They were led by senior guard Payton Willis. He dropped a season-high 32 points with three rebounds and seven assists.
Willis was on fire from downtown, shooting 8-for-13 from three. Senior guard Luke Loewe stepped up for Minnesota and finished with a season-best 19 points, two rebounds and three assists. Freshman center Treyton Thompson added 10 points and six rebounds in the win.
How to make Minnesota vs. Ohio State picks
SportsLine’s model is leaning over on the total, projecting 143 combined points. It has also generated an against-the-spread pick that cashes in over 60 percent of simulations. You can only get the model’s picks at SportsLine.
So who wins Ohio State vs. Minnesota? And which side of the spread hits in over 60 percent of simulations? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the spread to jump on, all from the advanced model that is up $2,800 on its top-rated college basketball picks the last five years, and find out.
