3 keys and a prediction for Nebraska Basketball vs Michigan

Nebraska basketball got some positive momentum on Sunday but will it continue against Michigan on Wednesday?

The Nebraska basketball team got a huge win on Sunday over Penn State but it was just the second win in the last eight games for the Huskers.

They are 4-8 on the season and 11-13 overall. Hopes of making the postseason, beyond the Big Ten tournament, are fading and a loss on Wednesday wouldn’t help.

Michigan is an 11.5-point favorite but the Wolverines aren’t unbeatable. Michigan is 13-10 on the season as well as 7-5 in the Big Ten. They have also lost to Central Michigan at home and went to overtime against Ohio and Jackson State.

Michigan tends to overlook teams. Down two starters, that could be ideal for a Nebraska team that needs to pull off a surprise or two down the stretch to get back to .500.

At any rate, here’s a look at three keys and a prediciton for Nebraska basketball vs Michigan.

Contain Hunter Dickinson

Hunter Dickinson is an All-American for a reason and he’s one of the best centers in the country, let alone the Big Ten. He scored 26 points on Sunday for the Wolverines against Ohio State and has nine games with at least 20 points this season. Michigan is 6-3 in those games.

Derrick Walker has been a solid defender in the post when he can avoid foul trouble. He’s giving up a few inches to Dickinson who is 7-foot-1 but he did a pretty job solid on Zach Edey the first time around. Nebraska doubled down plenty and should throw in some zone looks too.

But if the Huskers can find a way to hold Dickinson under 20, their chances of winning improve by quite a bit since Michigan is 7-7 this season when that happens.

Keep Keisei hot

Nebraska is going to need some outliers to win this game and one of those can come from Keisei Tominaga. Another five 3-pointers would be great, but Michigan is a team that can fall asleep at times defensively, particularly against off-ball movements like cuts, where Tominaga is really effective.

If he gets going from deep, I could easily see him scoring 20 against a Michigan team that has been inconsistent at best on defense (7th in the Big Ten in scoring defense). CJ Wilcher also needs to make some triples and the Huskers need to win the 3-point battle to have a shot.

Get extra possessions

Michigan has Dickinson but the Wolverines aren’t a great rebounding team. They rank 9th in the Big Ten in allowing offensive rebounds. Michigan is also 11th in turnovers. Nebraska hasn’t rebounded the ball as well with Juwan Gary out but Sam Griesel should be able to take advantage and if the Huskers can win the battle of the boards (especially offensive) and force double-digit turnovers, they will have a shot.

A key thing against Penn State was the fact that Nebraska had just seven turnovers and six fouls — in the entire game. If Nebraska does that again tonight, it will have a legit shot to pull an upset.

Nebraska basketball vs Michigan prediction

I don’t see Nebraska winning this game outright. The talent gap is too large and Michigan has been playing much better in the last two games. I do see the Huskers covering the spread though and keeping the game close and competitive.

Michigan 71, Nebraska 61

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