Michigan Wolverines vs. Oregon Ducks Odds, Analysis, March Madness Betting Pick

Michigan storms into the Sweet 16 of this NCAA tournament on a seven-game winning streak, which includes a 6-1 run against the spread. The Wolverines hope to keep the good times rolling when they run into Oregon in a Midwest Regional semifinal Thursday night in Kansas City.

Point spread: This game opened as a pick'em; the total is at 146.5, according to sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark. (Line updates and matchup report)

March Madness betting pick, via OddsShark computer: 71.8-71.4 Ducks (College basketball picks on every game)

Why Michigan can cover the spread

Coach John Beilein's crew opened this Dance with a wild 92-91 win over Oklahoma State last Thursday, then outlasted Louisville on Saturday 73-69. So Michigan is back playing on the second weekend of the tournament for the third time in the last five seasons.

The Wolverines trailed the Cardinals by eight points at halftime Saturday, and by nine with 15 minutes to go, but went on a 25-10 run to take a lead and hung on from there.

On the afternoon, Michigan shot 49 percent from the field, hit 11 of 14 free throws, including D.J. Wilson's four in a row in the last 20 seconds, and committed just six turnovers against an active Louisville defense.

And even though they came up just short of the mark Saturday, the Wolverines—at 16-1 on the updated odds to win the NCAA tournament, per GambleOnline.co—have still shot better than 50 percent from the floor in five of their last seven games.

Why Oregon can cover the spread

Coach Dana Altman's outfit opened this tournament with a 93-77 victory over Iona last Friday, then won a thriller over Rhode Island Sunday 75-72. So Oregon is also back in the Sweet 16 for the third time in the last five years.

The Ducks trailed the Rams by eight at the half Sunday and by 11 with about 14 minutes to play, then used a 23-10 run to take the lead. A few moments later, they won it on a Tyler Dorsey three-pointer with 11 seconds left.

Oregon shot 48 percent from the floor, hit seven of 16 from three-point range and held a 35-28 advantage on the boards.

Michigan's getting a lot of ink for its recent hot streak, but the Ducks have won 10 of their last 11 games, going 6-5 ATS in the process.

Smart betting pick

Oregon is holding opponents to 41 percent field-goal shooting this season. However, in three games since leading shot-blocker Chris Boucher went down with a knee injury, the Ducks have allowed foes to shoot a shade over 50 percent. And that doesn't bode well going against a hot-shooting Wolverines team. Take Michigan.

March Madness betting trends

The total has gone over in eight of Oregon's last nine games.

Oregon is 14-5-1 ATS in its last 20 games after a win.

Michigan is 7-0 SU and 6-1 ATS in its last seven games.

All college basketball lines and betting trends courtesy of Bleacher Report's official odds partner, OddsShark. All quotes gathered firsthand unless otherwise noted. Check out Twitter for injury and line-movement updates and the OddsShark YouTube page for picks and analysis, or download the free odds tracker app.