Michigan Wolverines

Cal, Michigan face decent odds this weekend to improve spots on the bubble

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

Sports Illustrated, OddsShark/Sports Illustrated

Teams on the NCAA Tournament bubble are quickly running out of time to play their way into a spot, but a handful of those teams will have great opportunities to do just that this weekend.

The California Golden Bears (18–9, 9–6 Pac-12) were up 16 points in the second half on the Oregon Ducks (25–4, 14–2) on Wednesday night in a game that would have likely catapulted the Bears into the tournament with a win. Instead, Cal blew the lead to pick up its third straight loss.

The Bears are an 18-point favorite at home at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com against lowly Oregon State (5–24, 1–15) on Friday night in a game that should serve as a slump-buster before an important road trip through Utah and Colorado.

Michigan (18–10, 8–7 Big Ten) earned just its second road win of the season with a victory over Rutgers on Wednesday. The Wolverines may need one more road win over Northwestern or Nebraska to strengthen their case for a spot, but that wouldn't be necessary if they could grab an upset win over Purdue (23–5, 12–3) this Saturday night.

With their 87–68 loss to Kansas, the TCU Horned Frogs (17–11, 6–9 Big 12) fell to 0–4 SU and 2–2 ATS on the college basketball odds against Top 25 teams. TCU will get one one more crack at a signature win in the regular season Saturday hosting West Virginia (22–6, 10–5).

Miami (19–8, 9–6 ACC) likely played its way off the bubble with a 54–48 road win over Virginia on Monday. The Hurricanes will try to improve their standing with another big upset at home hosting No. 10 Duke (22–6, 10–5) on Saturday.

Other big games on Saturday between ranked teams include No. 13 Florida (23–5, 13–2 SEC) at No. 11 Kentucky (23–5, 13–2) and No. 23 Creighton (22–6, 9–6 Big East) at No. 2 Villanova (26–3, 13–3). Kentucky is 3-0 SU and ATS in its last three home games against Florida, according to the OddsShark College Basketball Database, with all three wins coming by at least 15 points.

Sunday's top games include No. 16 Wisconsin (22–6, 11–4 Big Ten) at Michigan State (17–11, 9–6) and No. 22 Butler (22–6, 11–5 Big East) at Xavier (18–10, 8–7). Xavier is 9–3 SU and 10–2 ATS in its last 12 games against the Bulldogs.