The Alabama Crimson Tide and Michigan State Spartans traveled West for a Thanksgiving Day matchup at the Phil Knight Invitational at 10:30 p.m. ET on Thursday at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon. Knight is the founder of Nike, located in Eugene, Oregon, and the invitational is bringing several teams out west for this multi-team event.
The Crimson Tide (4-0) have had a softer schedule so far and get their first big test. Meanwhile, Michigan State (3-1) has a one-point loss to Gonzaga, an overtime win against Kentucky, and beat Villanova – three quality programs. That should factor in when making Alabama vs Michigan State picks.
The slate of NCAA basketball games today is a good one, and this will be no exception and should allow basketball fans to wind down their holiday with a great late game on the NCAAB schedule.
While this game doesn’t count in the college basketball standings, it certainly will play a factor when the committee is going through NCAA basketball teams to select them for the 68-team March Madness event to close the season.
Alabama Crimson Tide vs. Michigan State Spartans Odds
NCAAB odds show Alabama is a four-point favorite with a point total of 145.5 points. Those are up from the opening line of Alabama -2.5 with an over/under of 144.5. Alabama Crimson Tide odds on the moneyline are -175, while Michigan State Spartans odds are +150.
Matchup Information
Alabama Crimson Tide vs. Michigan State Spartans Betting Preview
Alabama Crimson Tide Betting Preview
Alabama has played with a dominant defense to start the season. The Crimson Tide are holding teams to 57.5 points per game, ranking 31st. Teams are only converting 30.7% of field goal attempts, the second-best mark in college basketball, and 27% of 3-pointers, which ranks 43rd.
Alabama is also the best rebounding team in the country, securing 51.8 boards per contest. The Crimson Tide defense ranks 45th in limiting teams to 27.5 rebounds per game.
Offensively, they score 84.8 points per game, ranking 27th nationally. However, their offensive efficiency has struggled. The Tide are converting 43.1% of field goal attempts, ranking 228th, and 33.6% of 3-pointers, ranking 199th.
The college basketball injury report shows Darius Miles is questionable with a foot injury, while guard Dominick Welch is also questionable with a lower-body injury.
Nate Oats’ team has three college basketball players averaging double figures. Forward Brandon Miller is averaging 20.3 points and 9.3 rebounds per game, which are first and second on the team, respectively. Mark Sears adds 15.3 points per game, and Rylan Griffen another 10.3 points per contest. Noah Clowney is the team’s leading rebounder at 10.5 rebounds per game, while Jahvon Quinerly is averaging 4.0 assists in 10 minutes per game over his two contests.
The Crimson Tide are 3-1 against the spread this season, 2-2 on over/under, and won their first true road game against South Alabama by 10, failing to cover the 10.5-point spread.
Michigan State Spartans Betting Preview
Michigan State Spartans stats show a team with an above-average defense and offense. But the defensive end is where Tom Izzo’s team is hanging its hat early this season.
The Spartans are allowing teams to score 66.8 points per game, which ranks 140th nationally, but the real celebration point is the defensive efficiency. The Spartans are holding teams to only 39.1% field goal shooting, ranking 81st, and 26.5% on 3-pointers, which ranks 37th.
Offensively, the Spartans are scoring 73.8 points per game, which ranks 177th and converting 44.2% of field goal attempts, which ranks 196th. They are, however, converting 36.8% of 3-pointers, which ranks 80th and is a strong improvement from a season ago.
Jaden Akins is listed as questionable with a foot injury. The reserve guard is averaging 6.8 points and 3.8 rebounds in just over 20 minutes per game this season.
Joey Hauser is one of three scorers averaging double figures for the Spartans. He’s averaging 14.0 points and 6.0 rebounds per game. Point guard Tyson Walker is next at 13.5 points and 4.8 assists per game. Then it’s Malik Hall, averaging 12.0 points and 5.3 rebounds per game.
Four others average at least 6.0 points per game, including Akins. A.J. Hoggard is among them at 9.5 points, a team-best 8.3 assists, and 4.5 rebounds per game. Forward Mady Sissoko is giving them a lift off the bench, too.
The Spartans are 2-2 against the spread and on over/under this season. They are also 1-1 on a neutral court, including a one-point loss to top-ranked Gonzaga on an aircraft carrier, a game the Spartans should have won. Nevertheless, those are important stats when making Alabama vs Michigan State picks.
Alabama Crimson Tide vs. Michigan State Spartans Betting Preview
These two teams have never met, so there isn’t betting history to fall back on. However, public betting data show 74% of Alabama vs Michigan State picks are on the underdog Spartans against the spread. Another 64% of bets are on the over, data shows.
The Crimson Tide are 1-7 against the spread in their last eight games following a win, and the over is 5-1 in their last six games against a team with a winning percentage over .600. The over is also 5-1 in their last six neutral site games.
The over is 5-1 in Michigan State’s last six games against a team with a winning percentage over .600. The over is 4-1 in the Spartans’ last five neutral site games and 9-3 in their last 12 games regardless of location. The Spartans are 7-1 against the spread in their last eight neutral-court games.
Michigan State will defend its tails off. That’s one thing Izzo’s teams always do, and this year’s group has great continuity after largely staying together after last year’s run to the Big Ten Tournament semifinals. The Spartans’ top group will contest with anyone in the country, as they have shown with some early tests.
That is why they are popular among public Alabama vs Michigan State picks and are also going to be our pick. We’ll take Spartans +2.5 and the +150 on the moneyline.
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