Wisconsin Badgers vs. Notre Dame Fighting Irish Betting Odds, March Madness Pick

The No. 6 seed Notre Dame Fighting Irish (23-11) and the No. 7 seed Wisconsin Badgers (22-12) both made deep runs in the Big Dance last season. They will both try to advance to the Elite Eight for the second consecutive year when they meet on Friday in an East Regional Sweet 16 matchup, with the Fighting Irish listed as consensus favorites at the sportsbooks.

Point spread: The Fighting Irish opened as one-point favorites; the total was 128, according to sportsbooks monitored by Odds Shark. (Line updates and matchup report)

March Madness pick, via Odds Shark computer: 67.0-65.0 Badgers

Why pick Wisconsin to cover the spread

The Badgers have covered the spread in six of their last eight appearances in the Sweet 16, according to the Odds Shark College Basketball Database. Despite losing Frank Kaminsky and Sam Dekker to the NBA, they still have a lot of NCAA tournament experience after making the Final Four each of the past two years and playing in the national championship game last season.

Bronson Koenig has proved he is a big-time player, making two three-pointers in the final 12 seconds to sink the No. 2 seed Xavier Musketeers 66-63 in the second round as 4.5-point underdogs. They can do it again.

Why pick Notre Dame to cover the spread

Notre Dame has simply found ways to win in its first two games, overcoming a double-digit halftime deficit against the Michigan Wolverines and then scoring on a tip-in with 1.5 seconds remaining versus the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks.

The Fighting Irish may have had a little luck here and there, but they know what it takes to win close games, improving to 8-1 straight up and 6-3 against the spread in their last nine games decided by seven points or fewer. This looks to be a similar type of matchup based on the point spread and Wisconsin's style of play, although the odds still favor Notre Dame.

Smart betting pick

Greg Gard definitely deserves a lot of credit for getting the Badgers to the Sweet 16 for the third straight year, taking over the coaching duties from Bo Ryan on December 15. But they do not have the talent to get past the Fighting Irish in this spot. Notre Dame is 4-1 ATS in its last five against Big Ten opponents and will find another way to win, covering the spread in essentially a pick'em game to get back to the Elite Eight.

March Madness betting trends

The total has gone under in seven of Notre Dame's last 10 games.

Notre Dame is 4-1 ATS in its last five games against the Big Ten.

Wisconsin is 10-2 SU and ATS in its last 12 games against teams with winning records.

Wisconsin is 13-3 SU and 12-4 ATS in its last 16 games.

All point spread and lines data courtesy of Odds Shark, and all quotes gathered firsthand unless otherwise noted. Check out Twitter for injury and line movement updates and get the free odds tracker app for iOS or Android.