College Basketball Picks Today:
Expert college basketball handicapper Greg Peterson shares his top college basketball picks today for Saturday, April 5.
Note that the earlier two games are in the inaugural College Basketball Crown in Las Vegas. A lot of states are not allowing wagering on the CBC.
Check out Greg’s Daily College Basketball Lines and his Coast 2 Coast Hoops Podcast. Also, check out our College Basketball Betting Splits.
1:30 PM Eastern
Boise State vs. Nebraska
Boise State leads the country in defensive rebound percentage with opponents reeling in only 19.7% of their missed shots as an offensive rebound and Nebraska’s outside shooting has been untrustworthy, ranking 240th in 3-point shooting percentage at 32.6%. Despite Boise State’s 3-point shooting ranking 284th at 31.6%, the team is 39th in points per possession on offense while Nebraska is 126th. With this being an AM game deeper in the tournament and Boise State being a slow tempo team, ranking 302nd in possessions per game, a bit more defense than in previous rounds should be expected.
Picks: Boise State -2 and Under 155 (Greg’s Handicap Boise State -3.5 and Total 149.5)
4:00 PM Eastern
Villanova vs. Central Florida
This is a tempo war with Central Florida leading the country in total possessions per game away from home, while Villanova is 360th in possessions per game. Both defenses leave something to be desired. Villanova is 159th in points per possession allowed and Central Florida is 228th in this department, but Villanova has much of their core from the regular season while Central Florida scoring leader Keyshawn Hall is no longer on the team. Villanova is also shooting 39.5% from 3-point range, which ranks fourth in the nation, while Central Florida is 184th at 33.7%.
Picks: Villanova -3 and Over 156.5 (Greg’s Handicap Villanova -5.5 and Total 157.5)
6:09 PM Eastern
Florida vs. Auburn
When these teams matched up in February, Florida went on the road and earned a 91-80 win with Florida’s second-leading scorer, Alijah Martin, missing that game. Since that game, Auburn is playing better defense, having allowed 70 points or fewer in each of their six SEC Tournament and NCAA Tournament games, but now Johnni Broome is dealing with all sorts of injuries. Though Broome will in all likelihood play on Saturday, his team might have a tough time breaking through a Florida defense that ranks 17th in the country in opponent 2-point shooting percentage and sixth in opponent 3-point shooting percentage.
Picks: Florida -2.5 and Under 160 (Greg’s Handicap Florida -3.5 and Total 150.5)
8:49 PM Eastern
Duke vs. Houston
The last team to defeat Duke was Clemson, who plays a slow brand of basketball that is predicated on making 3-point shots and playing strong defense. Houston does all of those things, ranking 358th in total possessions per game, first in points per possession allowed on defense, and their 39.7% 3-point shooting ranks second in the country. Houston’s season ended at the hands of Duke last season and now they have a chance at revenge in their home state and Milos Uzan, who has filled the role of departed point guard Jamal Shead, is averaging 14 points and four assists per game on 50.6% 3-point shooting with only 1.6 turnovers per game the past 21 games, which has been a 20-1 stretch for Houston.
Picks: Houston +5 and Under 137 (Greg’s Handicap Houston +2 and Total 134)
Check out this weekend’s contest with VSiN and 1/ST BET below.
