It all comes down to this: the NIT Championship Game at
Madison Square Garden tonight. With a win, Michigan will be one of
only two teams in all of division I college basketball to end its
year with a postseason win. The team is coming off of a 25-point
dismantling of Oregon, while Rutgers overcame Iowa State’s
late-game heroics for an overtime victory. The crowd at Madison
Square Garden was largely behind Rutgers, as it will undoubtedly be
tonight. Here’s how the Daily basketball writers see the
teams shaking down.
All year long, Michigan has had trouble playing in front of
raucous crowds on the road. And despite the fact that there will
likely be upwards of 2,000 Michigan fans in Madison Square Garden
tomorrow night, the rest of the place will be packed with Rutgers
faithful that make the short trip over from New Jersey. But
Michigan is playing as well as it has all year, as evidenced by the
Wolverines’ explosive dismantling of Oregon on Tuesday. The
Wolverines are deeper than the Scarlet Knights and are playing with
a tremendous amount of confidence. If Robinson can slow Douby, and
Michigan can come up with some type of presence on the inside, then
the Wolverines have enough talent to walk off with the title.
Prediction: Michigan, 74-70