Today's Free Play Comes Courtesy of Michael Briggs - Read His Full Analysis Below:

I favor Michigan, as I feel confident it will bounce back after an embarrassing loss to Illinois. The Wolverines have played a lot of tight games this season, but they have come out on top in nearly all of them. The Terrapins have been less fortunate in those scenarios, as all their losses this season came by six or fewer points. Aside from close wins over Villanova, Nebraska and Indiana, their wins have featured lopsided final scores. 

While Michigan may not have momentum, Maryland isn't rolling either, after a close loss to MSU and a narrow win over PSU. On the road, the Terps are less reliable (350th in Haslametrics' Away from Home metric), and they rank poorly in consistency (345th) and Paper Tiger Factor (351st), too. On top of that, I question whether they can handle the Wolverines' bigs at the rim. UM ranks 28th in near-proximity attempts and cleans up on the boards, ranking 8th in second-chance conversion percentage off offensive rebounds. Maryland ranks 177th in average opponent near-proximity shot attempt rate and 101st in potential quick points allowed off offensive rebounds. 

The Terps were shooting the basketball lights out from beyond the arc, but they haven't been nearly as hot over the last two games (11-for-41). Negative regression was looming, and I won't bank on Maryland warming up on the road. As talented as the Terrapins are, I lean towards the Wolverines' side in Wednesday's Big Ten battle.