College Basketball Bets
College basketball fans haven’t had a ton to follow this week and that remains true on Friday, as we only have eight games to consider betting on. We’ll have 93 tomorrow, so just save up your strength for the big Saturday slate. Two of tonight’s games, Texas vs. UConn and Missouri State vs. Xavier, get TV billing, while you’ll have to sign into ESPN+ to check out the others.
Even though we only have eight games, tip times are at 6, 7, 8, 8:30, and 9 p.m. ET, so the schedule is pretty nicely staggered if you’re spending a Friday night at home.
For more college basketball best bets today, check out Greg Peterson’s daily article.
As always, I want to give a shout-out to Bart Torvik (BartTorvik.com), Erik Haslam (Haslametrics.com), and KenPom, as they provide a lot of great data. This season, we’ve also connected with CBBAnalytics.com to access their data and I’ll be working that into my article. Use promo code VSIN for $30 off at CBB Analytics and find your betting edge.
This article will run Monday-Saturday. Lines will be from DraftKings, as they are widely available to readers. Shop around for the best prices.
Check the latest college basketball odds for legal U.S. sportsbooks across the country and our Vegas odds if you share a state with us here at VSiN. Also, give the college basketball betting splits (DraftKings) and Circa CBB Betting Splits a look for these or any other college basketball games today have your interest.
Odds from DraftKings Sportsbook at time of publish.
East Tennessee State Buccaneers (-4.5, 143.5) at Austin Peay Governors
8 p.m. ET
SoCon vs. A-Sun here, as the Buccaneers head from Johnson City up to Clarksville for an in-state battle against Austin Peay. ETSU has played one of the weakest schedules in the nation, so there may be some smoke and mirrors to their 8-2 start, but they have been dominant in several of those wins. All teams can do is play the opponents on the schedule and ETSU has held seven of 10 opponents under a point per possession.
But, according to KenPom, they’ve played the 352nd-ranked slate of opposing offenses. Now they draw an Austin Peay team that has played most of their games on the road and has to be happy to be in the friendly confines of F&M Bank Arena. In their only Division I game at home, the Governors racked up 1.189 points per possession against Northern Illinois.
The two teams rank at and slightly above the national average in tempo, but they’ve both allowed a lot of 3-point shots against. ETSU ranks 319th in 3P Rate against at 45.7% and Austin Peay ranks 301st in that department at 44.5%. If this game becomes a shooting contest, it certainly has the potential to go Over the total, especially because these are two aggressive defenses that rank 25th and 55th in TO%.
Both teams rank above the national average in fast break points and both teams have a high rate of points in the paint, as ETSU has a 42.4% shot share on Close Twos and Austin Peay has a 41.3% shot share. So, we have two teams with Rim & 3 Rates over 80% and teams that look to get out in transition off of turnovers. I like the Over in this game.
I also am considering playing Austin Peay. The Buccaneers’ strength of schedule is probably influencing their offensive and defensive numbers and the Governors are a much more comparable team to them than who they’ve played thus far.
Pick: Over 143.5
