Two of the best defensive teams in the country square off
with a trip to the Elite Eight on the line on Thursday when No. 2 seed
Michigan squares off against No. 3 seed Texas Tech. Tipoff from the
Honda Center is at 9:39 p.m. ET.

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The Wolverines enter Thursday's 2019 Sweet 16 matchup having won six of
their last eight games, while the Red Raiders have gone 11-1 in their
last 12. Vegas lists the Wolverines as 1.5-point favorites, with the
over-under for total points set at 126.5 in the latest Michigan vs.
Texas Tech odds. Before you make any Michigan vs. Texas Tech picks and
2019 NCAA Tournament predictions, see what SportsLine analyst Matt
Norlander is picking.Norlander is a national award-winning
writer for CBS Sports who has covered college basketball since 2007.
From insightful features to weekly game analysis, Norlander covers the
sport from every angle. He also co-hosts the popular CBS Sports College
Basketball Podcast.And he has developed a knack for picking
Texas Tech basketball, made evident by his 3-0 run picking for or
against the Red Raiders. Earlier this season, he told readers to take
Texas Tech (-4.5) against TCU, saying Texas Tech's defense would be too
much for the Horned Frogs to handle. The result: Texas Tech 84, TCU 65 -
Norlander nailed exactly how the game would go. Anybody following his
picks is up big right now.Now, he has analyzed Texas Tech vs.
Michigan from every possible angle and locked in a confident
against-the-spread selection. It's only available at SportsLine.Norlander
knows Michigan boasts one the nation's stingiest defenses. The
Wolverines are holding their opponents to just 58.2 points per game,
which ranks second in the country. John Beilein's team is also holding
their opponents to an abysmal 39.9 field goal percentage.On
offense, Michigan's Ignaz Brazdeikis, Jordan Poole and Charles Matthews
are all averaging over 12 points per game and shooting 43 percent or
better from the field. That's because their focus is on shot quality on
offense, which allows the Wolverines to get high-quality looks.But
just because the Wolverines boast a stingy defense and efficient
offense doesn't mean they'll cover the Michigan vs. Texas Tech spread on
Thursday.Norlander also knows the Red Raiders are one of the
hottest teams in the country, going 11-1 straight-up and 10-2
against-the-spread in their last 12 games. In their last game against
Buffalo, the Red Raiders had two players record double-doubles and five
score at least 10 points. Texas Tech is also strong on the defensive
end. In fact, they're giving up just 59.2 points per game this season,
good for third nationally. We can tell you Norlander is leaning
over, but his much stronger play is on the spread. He's found a critical
x-factor that makes one side of the spread hit hard on Thursday. He's
only sharing what it is, and who to back, at SportsLine.