The Grizzlies of Montana (25-9) are back in the Big Dance preparing to take on the Wisconsin Badgers (26-9) in an intriguing East Region matchup. Montana won the Big Sky Championship over Northern Colorado while Wisconsin lost in the Big Ten Title Game to Michigan.
Led by Money Williams (13.3 points per game), Montana takes the court having won four in a row. Prior to their loss to Michigan, the Badgers had won three in a row. John Tonje is having one of the top scoring seasons in Wisconsin history averaging 19.2 points per game.
The winner of this game earns the right to play the winner of BYU vs. VCU.
Lets dive into the matchup and offer some information and possibly a sweat or two.
We’ve got all the info and analysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on the how to catch the opening tip, recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks & best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts.
Game details & how to watch Montana vs. Wisconsin
- Date: Thursday, March 20, 2025
- Time: 1:30PM EST
- Site: Ball Arena
- City: Denver, CO
- Network/Streaming: TNT
Never miss a second of the action and stay up to date with all the latest scores and player news. Check out our day-by-day NCAA Basketball Schedule Page that includes live game updates.
Game odds for Montana vs. Wisconsin
The latest odds as of Tuesday courtesy of BetMGM:
- Odds: Montana Grizzlies (+1050), Wisconsin Badgers (-2500)
- Spread: Badgers -17.5
- Total: 151.5 points
Expert picks & predictions for Montana vs. Wisconsin
NBC Sports Bet Best Bet
Vaughn Dalzell (@VmoneySports) expects plenty of points early: 1H Over 72.5
“Montana’s tallest player is 6-8 and they rank 347th in offensive rebounding percentage out of 364 teams. Wisconsin’s Steven Crowl (7-foot) and Nolan Winter (6-foot-11) should have successful days on the boards and scoring, plus John Tonje has been an absolute animal that can carry this team. On the other side, Montana ranks first in offensive 2-point% at 61.1% and second in effective field goal percentage at 61% since February 6. That will be put to the test. Any way you chop it up, we could see points early on, so I lean the first half Over 72.5.”
Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the NCAA calendar based on data points like past performance, player matchups, injuries, and the schedule.
Once the model is finished running, we put its projection next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager.
Here are the best bets our model is projecting for Thursday’s Grizzlies & Badgers game:
- Moneyline: NBC Sports Bet is staying away from a play on the Moneyline.
- Spread: NBC Sports Bet is leaning towards a play ATS on Wisconsin -17.5.
- Total: NBC Sports Bet is staying away from a play on the Game Total of 151.5.
Montana vs. Wisconsin: Top betting trends and recent stats
- Montana is 4-0-1 against the spread in their last 5 games (14-11-3 for the season)
- Wisconsin is 19-11-1 against the spread for the season but just 5-5 ATS in their last 10 games
- These teams have met once previously with Wisconsin winning 73-49 on March 11, 2012
If you’re looking for more key trends and stats around the spread, moneyline and total for every single game on the schedule today, check out our NCAA Basketball Top Trends Tool on NBCSports.com!
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Follow our experts on socials to keep up with all the latest content from the staff:
· Jay Croucher (@croucherJD)
· Drew Dinsick (@whale_capper)
· Vaughn Dalzell (@VmoneySports)
· Brad Thomas (@MrBradThomas)
