UCLA vs. Michigan: Game preview, prediction, TV schedule

The Michigan Wolverines host the UCLA Bruins as a battle between two sleeper NCAA Tournament teams takes place Saturday afternoon on CBS.

TV Schedule: Saturday, Dec. 9, 12:00 p.m. ET, CBS

Arena: Crisler Center, Ann Arbor, Michigan

The Michigan Wolverines and UCLA Bruins are two extremely similar teams right now in terms of season potential.

Neither conference has looked as good as advertised, leaving room for one of these two teams to seize an opportunity to defy preseason expectations.

Michigan has lost three games so far, all three of which were on the road or on a neutral court, something that the Selection Committee will take into account come March. A win against UCLA would pretty much mean that all this team had to do is find a way to avoid really bad losses and get to 20 wins and they would be in the NCAA Tournament – an achievable goal.

UCLA, on the other hand, is nowhere near as good as they were last season, but, the good news, is that the Pac-12 looks pretty bad from top to bottom. Not only do the Bruins play the worst team in the Power 6 (and maybe the country) Cal twice this season, but they do not have a home and home with Arizona.

USC and Arizona are the two “clear” NCAA Tournament teams in the Pac-12, but a likely third spot and third place in the Pac-12 is up for grabs – and even higher potentially if Arizona fails to turn things around and USC does not show some consistency.

A win over Michigan on the road might look fantastic come March, since the Big Ten is suffering from being a bit top heavy, as well. Who knows, the Wolverines could legitimate finish top six in the Big Ten from the looks of things right now and be the marquee road win the Bruins are hoping to achieve.

That being said, any team on the road is a tough task, and the Bruins will find themselves hard-pressed to get a win in Crisler Center against a solid Wolverines’ squad.

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However, I’m picking UCLA in this one, as they shirk the Ball-drama for good and play one of their best games of the season to defeat Michigan.

Prediction: UCLA 77, Michigan 74