The University of Michigan’s men’s lacrosse team wasn’t content just qualifying for the first NCAA Tournament in program history. The Wolverines outlasted No. 8 seed Cornell in the first round, winning 15-14 in overtime.
Michigan’s reward? A date with top-seeded Duke on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. ET. The match between the Wolverines and the nation’s best team will air on ESPNU.
The winner of Michigan-Duke punches its ticket to the Final Four in Philadelphia, which takes place Memorial Day weekend. The Michigan-Duke winner faces the victor of Sunday’s Penn State-Army matchup.
Wolverines large underdogs
Michigan pulled the upset over Cornell as a moneyline underdog, and the Wolverines need to do the same Saturday to keep their season alive. Several mobile sportsbooks available in Michigan offer college lacrosse betting odds, including BetMGM, DraftKings, and FanDuel, and they all view Michigan as a sizable underdog.
BetMGM and DraftKings each have Michigan’s moneyline at +240, while FanDuel gives the Wolverines slightly longer odds at +265. Duke is 14-2 on the season, with its only losses coming to Notre Dame and Jacksonville. The Blue Devils looked mortal in their first game of the tournament, defeating Delaware 12-11. The Blue Hens led Duke 7-3 early on and held a fourth-quarter lead before Duke prevailed.
Elsewhere in the tournament, Army pulled a major upset over No. 4 Maryland. Two of the tournament’s top eight seeds have already been eliminated.
DraftKings lists Michigan as a 3-goal underdog, with odds of -115 on the Wolverines to cover the 3-goal spread. BetMGM (-120) and FanDuel (-128) list Michigan as a 3.5-goal underdog.
The total for the game is 28.5 goals at BetMGM, DraftKings, and FanDuel.
Michigan’s odds to win the national championship are +1500 on DraftKings and +1600 on FanDuel. Only Army has longer odds than the Wolverines to win the national championship at each mobile sportsbook. DraftKings lists Duke as the +250 betting favorite to win the national championship.
The Wolverines impressed in their first-round triumph over Cornell, but sports betting markets suggest their NCAA Tournament run could soon be over.
Photo: Jaime Crawford/Getty Images
