The Michigan Wolverines take on the Auburn Tigers in the NCAA Tournament. Tip-off is set for 9:39 p.m. ET on CBS.
Auburn is favored by 9 points on the spread with a moneyline of -425. The total is set at 154.5 points.
Here are my Michigan vs. Auburn predictions and college basketball picks for March 28, 2025.
Michigan vs Auburn Prediction
My Pick: Auburn -9 (Play to -9.5)
My Michigan vs Auburn best bet is on the Tigers spread, with the best odds currently available at Caesars. For all of your college basketball bets, be sure to find the best lines by using our live NCAAB odds page.
Michigan vs Auburn Odds, Lines
| Michigan Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+9 -115 | 154.5 -110o / -110u | +325 |
| Auburn Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-9 -105 | 154.5 -110o / -110u | -425 |
- Michigan vs Auburn spread: Auburn -9
- Michigan vs Auburn over/under: 154.5 points
- Michigan vs Auburn moneyline: Auburn -425, Michigan +325
- Michigan vs Auburn best bet: Auburn -9 (Play to -9.5)
My Michigan vs Auburn Sweet 16 Betting Preview
The Auburn Tigers had a fairly close call versus Creighton, but they exploded for 47 second-half points to advance.
Michigan was in a similar spot versus Texas A&M, but it turned it around and out-rebounded the Aggies en route to a win.
I haven't trusted the Wolverines at all this year, and maybe I'm a bit wrong since Michigan is in the Sweet 16.
However, Michigan will have its bigs contained by Auburn's elite interior defense, which means the guards have to play well. They did versus the Aggies, led by 25 points from Roddy Gayle Jr. He hit more 3s in that one game than he did in the last two months.
I'm fading Dusty May's bunch again, though. Michigan is still the close-game kings, winning 13 games by four or fewer points.
Also, that Gayle performance makes it even tougher for me to believe in Michigan. The Wolverines still went just 6-of-22 from 3 vs. A&M and the worst shooter on the team hit four 3s. Facing a better opponent, the Wolverines need to keep the turnovers to a minimum and shoot it better than 26%.
May is known as an offensive coach. However, the Wolverines sit just 76th in offensive efficiency in their past 11 games. Shooting 27% from 3 and turning the ball over 18% of the time will eventually lead to Michigan's demise, as that's just a terrible formula.
I have to give some credit to Michigan, though. The defense has made up for the offensive woes, ranking eighth in efficiency over their last 11 games.
On the flip side, Bruce Pearl has extreme lineup balance. Of course, the conductor of the Tigers' offense is National Player of the Year candidate Johni Broome. However, as the Tigers showed in the Round of 32, it can survive a pedestrian Broome performance.
The key here is the four guards. The wily veteran Chad Baker-Mazara suffered a hip injury in the second half against Creighton, but he's a mismatch for Michigan with his size and ball-handling. Denver Jones should provide stout defense on his former teammate Tre Donaldson.
Meanwhile, Miles Kelly can explode for a 20+ point scoring outburst with his elite shooting, and the speedy Tahaad Pettiford will look to exploit the Michigan bigs if they switch on screens.
I trust offense a bit more than defense here. The Tigers are sixth in offensive efficiency in their past 15 games. They turned the ball over at just a 13% clip (and Michigan never forces turnovers) and have shot 55.2% from 2 in that span.
When everything clicks for Auburn, stopping its offense is almost impossible. I don't foresee Michigan having enough offensive firepower to keep the game within single digits.
Plus, Broome's play style as a point forward will drag Danny Wolf onto the perimeter, which is his weakness.
I expect the Tigers to take a page out of UC San Diego's playbook and expose the Michigan bigs defensively.
