College Basketball Picks

The Wildcats of Villanova picked up a huge 81-66 victory last time out on Friday against Marquette, and it has shown that it can be very, very dangerous at home. It was the second Quad 1 win in the past two weeks for the Wildcats, as they also upended St. John’s on Feb. 12. The problems for the Wildcats begin when they stray away from Philadelphia, as Villanova has dropped five of the past six games on the road, with the lone exception a victory over lowly DePaul on Feb. 5. In that game, Villanova was horrific offensively, but it won 59-49, leaning heavily on its defense. The Wildcats are 5-1 against the spread (ATS) in the past six games.

The Pirates of Seton Hall are looking to avenge a 79-67 loss at Villanova on Dec. 17, as the Wildcats also covered as 8-point favorites as the Over (126) cashed. Seton Hall has had a dismal season, although it did upend UConn 69-68 in overtime at “The Pru” on Feb. 15 as a 13.5-point underdog, showing it can rise up and bite an unprepared team, or one taking it lightly. Seton Hall has covered the past two games at home, while going 3-1 ATS in the past four in front of the home fans. Villanova might get the job done, but it has struggled on the road, while Seton Hall has shown some ability to at least keep it close at home lately. Back the Pirates catching more than four buckets.

Seton Hall +8.5 (-110) at time of publishing. Playable at that number. 

This should be a tense SEC battle as both teams are currently tied in 11th place, but only one team will emerge victorious and move their way up in the standings after tonight’s matchup.  Both Texas and Arkansas are 5-9 in conference play and also have an identical overall record of 16-11.  The last time these two teams met, Arkansas defeated the Longhorns on their home court 78-70, and tonight, Texas will be looking for revenge as they know the NCAA Tournament committee will be taking everything into consideration with only a few games left of the regular season.  

I believe Arkansas has a little bit more momentum than the Longhorns right now after pulling off a surprising 92-85 victory over Missouri.  Arkansas has won 2 of its last 5, but 3 of those losses came against Alabama, Texas A&M and Auburn, all top-10 teams, and Arkansas was within striking distance in all of those matchups.  As for Texas, they had a solid victory over then No. 15 Kentucky, but they have lost 4 of their last 5, which includes a 84-69 loss to South Carolina on Saturday.  On the season, Texas is averaging 78.3 points per game while giving up 69.8, and Arkansas is averaging 76.1 points per game while giving up 69.4.  Both teams are similar on offense and defense, rebounding the ball and turnovers this season.  I believe Arkansas has been a little bit more consistent as of late, despite their losses, and Texas is trending in the wrong direction as the season comes near a close.  I think Arkansas has what it takes to cover the small spread.

Texas vs Arkansas prediction: Arkansas -3.5 (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.

You can bet on our Texas vs Arkansas pick with BetMGM, where right now new users can activate your new BetMGM account ⚡ and get $150 in bonus bets INSTANTLY if your first $10 wager is a winner.

The Virginia Cavaliers will travel to Winston-Salem on Wednesday night to play an ACC game against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons. Virginia is just 13-14 on the season and will need to win the ACC Tournament to make the NCAA Tournament. Wake Forest is 19-8 and will most likely need to win 3 of their last 4 games to keep themselves in the at-large conversation. The Demon Deacons’ offense has held them back from being a better team, as they are ranked just 236th in points per game this season. We do not expect the offense to be great in this matchup, so we’re rolling with the Under for our best bet.

We expect a low-scoring game here because it should be a slow-paced matchup and neither team’s offense has been good this season. Wake Forest has struggled to put points on the board and Virginia is even worse, ranking 344th in points per game in the nation. The Cavaliers played at a very slow pace under head coach Tony Bennett and that has not changed under first-year head coach Ron Sanchez. According to KenPom, Virginia is ranked 362nd in adjusted tempo and 352nd in average offensive possession length. Their slow pace makes it difficult for them to put up points and should help this total stay Under.

Virginia vs Wake Forest prediction: Under 130.5 (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable to 130.

Bet like a Caesar with this awesome new customer offer from Caesars, where you can bet just $1 and then DOUBLE YOUR WINNINGS on your next 10 bets. Become a Caesars member 👥 using the Caesars promo code PICKSWISEDYW, where you can bet on our Virginia vs Wake Forest picks.

We head to the Mountain West on Wednesday night for a Utah State Aggies vs Boise State Broncos prediction. This matchup is an absolutely crucial one for both teams, as nearly all of the good Mountain West teams are clustered up within 10 spots in most of the net rankings systems. For Utah State, this is a must-win if they want to win the conference, as they got a huge lift from New Mexico losing last night. For Boise, most experts have them on the outside of the tournament field, so they need to pick up a big win at home in this spot. These teams played a few weeks ago at Utah State, and the Aggies pulled out a narrow 81-79 victory. I expect another close contest on Wednesday, and that takes me to the Utah State side of this spread.

If you don’t watch these teams often, here is a quick preview. Boise State is a controlled and deliberate squad. They play slowly, and they control the glass, ranking 2nd in defensive rebounding metrics, per Torvik. They are solid on both ends of the floor, but their weaknesses are that they don’t shoot the three-ball very well, and they are prone to turnovers. Utah State, on the other hand, is a very balanced team. Their offense is way better than their defense, but they often survive on offensive rebounding, something that will be a real struggle against the Broncos. Their weakness is that they don’t defend the deep ball well, but Boise shouldn’t punish them for that. We seem to have a spot for neither team is well suited to exploit the weaknesses of the other. Utah State should be the better team, but Boise is rightly favored, given that they have only lost once at home this season. Still, I like the motivational spot for the Aggies, who suddenly have a chance to win the conference if they can take care of their own business. I don’t know if Utah State can get the win, but this certainly feels like a close battle tonight. I’ll take the points with the road dog.

Utah State vs Boise State prediction: Utah State +4.5 (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.

You can bet on our Utah State vs Boise State pick with BetMGM, where right now new users can activate your new BetMGM account ⚡ and get $150 in bonus bets INSTANTLY if your first $10 wager is a winner.

The UConn Huskies have alternated wins and losses over their last 6 games heading into a home date with Big East rival Georgetown Hoyas on Wednesday night. UConn is coming off an 89-75 setback at St. John’s this past Sunday, its 2nd loss to the Red Storm in the span of 17 days. Following a whole host of departures to the NBA, these simply are not the same Huskies that cut down the nets in each of the past 2 seasons. They have already dropped 6 conference games and no one is averaging more than 15.3 ppg. Head coach Dan Hurley’s squad is shooting just 35.0 percent from three-point range and its turnover differential in Big East competition is a ridiculous -41 (195 to 154).

Georgetown is by no means a terrible team — it has alternated losses and wins over its last 7 and comes in with a 7-9 conference mark. The Hoyas have lost by more than 13 points only twice this entire season, only once since November 16 and zero times since January 28. They fell to UConn by a respectable 8 points on January 11. The bad news is that Thomas Sorber — the Hoyas’ second-leading scorer and #1 rebounder — is out for the year due to a foot injury suffered on February 15. That’s the main reason why this spread is so lofty. Georgetown should still cover, but I would proceed with caution given Sorber’s absence.

Georgetown vs UConn prediction: Georgetown +13 (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.

Now you can bet any of our Georgetown vs UConn predictions at FanDuel Sportsbook, which has a great new-customer offer to take advantage of. If you sign up for FanDuel right now, you earn a welcome bonus worth up to $150 if your first $5 bet wins! Use this link 🔗 to join FanDuel right now and learn more.

The biggest game on the college basketball Wednesday night card takes place in College Park, Maryland where the Michigan State Spartans will take on the Maryland Terrapins in a heated Big Ten matchup. This game has significant implications at the top of the conference standings, with the Spartans currently holding a tiebreaker edge over in-state rival Michigan for first place in the Big Ten regular-season chase. From a situational perspective, I definitely side with Maryland at home in this game, especially considering what the Spartans have dealt with over the past few weeks. Over the last 6 games, Michigan State has played close contests against UCLA, Oregon, Indiana, Illinois, Purdue and Michigan, and the Spartans still have Wisconsin on deck this weekend. This will be the 4th game in an 11-day span for Michigan State as well, so fatigue could come into play once we hit the 2nd half.

As for the hosts, Maryland has had 6 days off following an easy win over USC at home, so the Terps will have had plenty of time to prepare for Michigan State. The Spartans were pretty fortunate to get poor three-point shooting performances from the likes of Illinois, Purdue and Michigan in its recent victories over those squads. Considering that Maryland is one of the best three-point shooting teams in the league, I wouldn’t expect the Spartans to get this fortunate once again on Wednesday. In fact, while Michigan State’s defense is solid, the Spartans don’t do a good enough job of forcing turnovers (222nd in turnover percentage) and they allow a ton of open looks from beyond the arc (333rd in three-point rate allowed). It’s important to note that teams are likely due for some positive regression in the three-point shooting department against Tom Izzo’s team, with the Spartans sitting at 5th in tjree-point percentage allowed, despite allowing plenty of open looks each game. With that in mind, the Terrapins should be able to cash in on some of those wide-open looks, while also attacking the passing lanes and exploiting some of the flaws in this Michigan State defense. All things considered, I’ll lay the short number with the home team in this Big Ten game.

Michigan State vs Maryland prediction: Maryland -3.5 (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable to 4.

You can bet on our Michigan State vs Maryland pick with BetMGM, where right now new users can activate your new BetMGM account ⚡ and get $150 in bonus bets INSTANTLY if your first $10 wager is a winner.

NC State heads north to take on their ACC rival, Syracuse, in hopes of making it 2 wins in a row.  NC State currently sits 16th in the ACC, and if they want to make the ACC tournament and pull off the greatest Cinderella story of all time, they need to find a way to move their way up in the ACC standings.  However, NC State has not won a game on the road this season, and even though Syracuse has a mediocre record on their home court sitting at 9-7, they have a slight advantage in tonight’s matchup that’s making me lean towards them.

There are 2 things I’m focusing on in tonight’s matchup between these 2 teams. First, Syracuse has the upper hand to grab extra rebounds in this matchup.  Cuse sits 3rd in the ACC with rebounds per game at 37.8, whereas NC State sits 16th with 32.1 rebounds per game.  Second, Syracuse has the scoring advantage where they average 74.7 points and NC State averages 70.2 points per game, but it’s the defense that may be an issue here.  Syracuse is giving up 78.6 points per game, 17th in the ACC, whereas NC State is giving up 69.9 points per game this season, putting them 6th in the ACC. Both teams have identical records this season, and both teams are struggling with the Orange going 2-7 in their last 9 games and the Wolfpack going 2-8 in their last 10.  However, Syracuse is playing in front of their home crowd and NC State has yet to win a game on the road.  I think Syracuse has a slight edge in tonight’s game and should be able to score enough points to win by a bucket, covering the spread in tonight’s matchup. 

NC State vs Syracuse prediction: Syracuse -1.5 (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.

Bet like a Caesar with this awesome new customer offer from Caesars, where you can bet just $1 and then DOUBLE YOUR WINNINGS on your next 10 bets. Become a Caesars member 👥 using the Caesars promo code PICKSWISEDYW, where you can bet on our NC State vs Syracuse picks.

Ole Miss’ conference schedule has been a roller coaster. The Rebels (19-8) started SEC play 4-0 before losing 4 of their next 5. They got back on track with a 3-game winning streak over Kentucky, LSU and South Carolina, but find themselves in the midst of another losing streak as they travel to Auburn to play the Tigers (25-2) – who have won 4 in a row after their home loss to Florida. These teams played once already this year, and Auburn controlled that game pretty much from beginning to end. The Tigers scored 1.31 points per possession in Oxford, and each of their starters scored at least 10 points in the win.

Despite their 4-game winning streak, the Tigers have failed to cover at home in 3 straight outings, largely because they haven’t shot well from the perimeter at the Jungle of late. In fact, they connected on just 17 of 68 (25%) three-point attempts in those games, which is well below their season average. Their poor offensive showing cost them the game against Florida, but they managed to beat Arkansas and Georgia despite not covering the double-digit spreads. This will be the 3rd consecutive home game for the Tigers, and because they will be matched up against a defense they have already seen and succeeded against earlier this season, I like the Tigers to get back on track offensively on Wednesday night – specifically from the perimeter. Ole Miss gives up a healthy amount of threes, ranking 312th nationally in opposing 3-point rate. Moreover, the Rebels have regressed defensively in recent weeks. They are in the 30th percentile in defensive rating over their last 5 games (CBB Analytics) and rank 265th in opposing effective field goal percentage since February 1 (Bart Torvik). They also have failed to cover in their last 3 games as underdogs. Lay it with Auburn.

Ole Miss vs Auburn prediction: Auburn -12.5 (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable to 14.

If you’re looking for a new sportsbook, check out Bet365, the world’s #1 sportsbook. They have an amazing sign-up offer where you can INSTANTLY receive $100 in bonus bets from a $5 wager, regardless of whether that bet wins or loses! There’s no catch, it’s really that simple. Join Bet365 right now ⏰ in time to fade or follow our experts’ Ole Miss vs Auburn predictions.