Michigan State vs. Northwestern Dunkel Predictions & Vegas Odds - Jan. 8

The No. 12 Michigan State Spartans (13-2, 3-1 Big Ten) host the Northwestern Wildcats (8-6, 0-3 Big Ten) at Jack Breslin Students Events Center, starting at 6:30 p.m. ET on Thursday, January 8, 2026. The Spartans are 12.5-point favorites in the game. The matchup has an over/under of 142.5 points.

Michigan State came out on top in its last matchup 80-51 against USC on Monday. Coen Carr's team-leading 18 points led Michigan State in the win. Northwestern's most recent outing was an 84-78 loss to Minnesota on Saturday. Nick Martinelli's team-high 26 points paced Northwestern in the losing effort.

Michigan State vs. Northwestern Odds and Game Time

• When: Thursday, January 8, 2026 at 6:30 p.m. ET
• Where: Jack Breslin Students Events Center in East Lansing, Michigan
• Spread favorite: Michigan State -12.5
• Moneyline favorite: Michigan State -952
• Moneyline underdog: Northwestern +610
• Over/Under: 142.5 points

How to watch Michigan State vs. Northwestern

• TV Channel: Big Ten Network
• Live Stream: Fubo
• Check out the rest of our Dunkel Index NCAA Basketball Picks!

Betting the Over/Under: Michigan State vs. Northwestern

• Michigan State and its opponents have hit the over on this game's total (142.5 points) seven times this season.
• In Northwestern's 14 games this season, 10 finished with more combined points than Thursday's over/under of 142.5.
• The total for the game of 142.5 is 17.0 points fewer than the combined points per game averages for the Spartans (79.1 points per game) and the Wildcats (80.4 points per game).
• The 134.8 points per game these two teams allow to opponents combined this season are 7.7 less than the 142.5-point over/under in this contest.
• This season, the average over/under for Michigan State's games is 143.5 points, 1.0 more than the total of 142.5 points set for this contest.
• Northwestern's games have an average over/under of 150.8 points this season, 8.3 more points than the over/under for this contest.

Betting the Spread: Michigan State vs. Northwestern

• Michigan State is 8-7-0 against the spread this season.
• This season, the Spartans have just two against the spread wins in seven games as a favorite of 12.5 points or more.
• Northwestern has four wins against the spread in 14 games this season.
• Michigan State is 4-5 against the spread, and 8-1 overall, at home this season.
• Michigan State has one win ATS (1-4) as a 12.5-point favorite or more at home.

Betting the Moneyline: Michigan State vs. Northwestern

• This season, Michigan State has been listed as the moneyline favorite in 12 games and won them all.
• The Spartans are undefeated in seven games this season when favored by -952 or more on the moneyline.
• The moneyline for this contest implies a 90.5% chance of a victory for Michigan State.
• Northwestern has been named as the moneyline underdog three times this season but has yet to come away with a victory in any of those games.
• The Wildcats have yet to play a game this season with longer moneyline odds than +610.
• Northwestern has an implied victory probability of 14.1% according to the moneyline set for this matchup.