Who’s Playing
Minnesota @ Northwestern
Current Records: Minnesota 13-15; Northwestern 13-15
What to Know
After two games on the road, the Northwestern Wildcats are heading back home. The Wildcats and the Minnesota Golden Gophers will face off in a Big Ten battle at 7:30 p.m. ET Sunday at Welsh-Ryan Arena. Given that these two teams suffered a loss in their last game, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this matchup.
Northwestern was expected to have a tough go of it last week, and, well, they did. They found themselves the reluctant recipients of an unpleasant 82-61 punch to the gut against the Iowa Hawkeyes. Guard Ty Berry put forth a good effort for the losing side as he shot 5-for-10 from downtown and finished with 19 points.
Meanwhile, the game between Minnesota and the Maryland Terrapins this past Wednesday was not a total blowout, but with the Golden Gophers falling 84-73 on the road, it was darn close to turning into one. Forward Jamison Battle did his best for Minnesota, finishing with 39 points (a whopping 53% of their total).
Northwestern is the favorite in this one, with an expected 7.5-point margin of victory. They have failed bettors playing the spread in their past two games, so buyers beware.
The losses bumped both teams down to an identical 13-15. Two numbers to keep in mind before tip-off: Northwestern enters the contest with only 9.7 turnovers per game on average, good for ninth best in college basketball. Less enviably, the Golden Gophers are stumbling into the contest with the 15th fewest takeaways in college basketball, having accrued only 10.5 on average. So the cards are definitely stacked against Minnesota.
How To Watch
- When: Sunday at 7:30 p.m. ET
- Where: Welsh-Ryan Arena — Evanston, Illinois
- TV: Big Ten Network
- Follow: CBS Sports App
- Ticket Cost: $14.99
Odds
The Wildcats are a big 7.5-point favorite against the Golden Gophers, according to the latest college basketball odds.
The oddsmakers were right in line with the betting community on this one, as the game opened as a 7.5-point spread, and stayed right there.
Over/Under: -108
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Series History
Minnesota have won seven out of their last 12 games against Northwestern.
- Feb 19, 2022 – Minnesota 77 vs. Northwestern 60
- Mar 10, 2021 – Minnesota 51 vs. Northwestern 46
- Feb 25, 2021 – Northwestern 67 vs. Minnesota 59
- Mar 11, 2020 – Minnesota 74 vs. Northwestern 57
- Feb 23, 2020 – Minnesota 83 vs. Northwestern 57
- Jan 05, 2020 – Minnesota 77 vs. Northwestern 68
- Feb 28, 2019 – Minnesota 62 vs. Northwestern 50
- Jan 23, 2018 – Northwestern 77 vs. Minnesota 69
- Jan 10, 2018 – Northwestern 83 vs. Minnesota 60
- Jan 05, 2017 – Minnesota 70 vs. Northwestern 66
- Feb 04, 2016 – Northwestern 82 vs. Minnesota 58
- Jan 09, 2016 – Northwestern 77 vs. Minnesota 52
