College Basketball Picks - ATS Predictions
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Arizona out-shot UCLA in the two meetings this season by a combined 49 percent to 34 percent and out-rebounded the Bruins by a per-game margin of 45-32. The Wildcats also managed pretty well without Kriisa Friday night. So we like Arizona to win this PAC-12 tournament championship game.
Duke is the better defensive team in this match-up, does a better job on the boards and will probably win this game. But the Dukies are also too often favored by too much and Miami is 9- 2-1 ATS this season as an underdog. Plus, the Hurricanes don’t fear Duke; they’ve beaten them twice in a row. So we’re taking the
'Canes and the points here.
These two teams have played a whole bunch of close games this season, including the two in
which they faced each other. We won’t be surprised when this one goes down to the last minute.
Also, playing Wednesday might actually work to Seton Hall’s advantage, whereas UConn’s had five days off. So we like the Pirates plus the points in this spot.
Gonzaga is probably going to win this game; it's just the better team overall. But St. Mary's looked like it figured something out when it pulled that upset two weeks ago, holding the Zags to season-low offensive numbers. Plus, Sagarin's ratings say this game should be closer than the spread, and we hold those ratings in high regard. We're not calling for another outright upset here, but we are taking the Gaels and the points.
Gonzaga is 34-1 over its last 35 WCC games, 33 of those wins coming by double-digits. The Zags also won both games vs. San Francisco this season by 16 points. And we expect a bounce-back performance from Gonzaga here, following their poorest performance of this season last time out. So we're betting the Bulldogs, minus the points.Gonzaga is 34-1 over its last 35 WCC games, 33 of those wins coming by double-digits. The Zags also won both games vs. San Francisco this season by 16 points. And we expect a bounce-back performance from Gonzaga here, following their poorest performance of this season last time out. So we're betting the Bulldogs, minus the points.
Iowa is playing great ball as of late, including the other night at Michigan, but that just has us wondering if the Hawkeyes might be ripe for a letdown in this spot. Illinois, meanwhile, put on a poor performance against an inferior foe last time out, but that just leads us to believe they'll play much sharper Sunday night. Also, the Illini are the better defensive team and better on the boards. So we're giving the points here with Illinois.
Six of the last ten meetings between these two teams were decided by five points or less, one in overtime. Also, we expect a bounce-back performance from USC Saturday night, following a poor one last time out. Also, Juzang is still questionable. We see another close game here, so we’re taking the Trojans plus the points.
Belmont won the previous meeting in this series getting a narrow 49-48 road win and I'm banking on the Eagles defense to keep this close again in another low-scoring affair.
St. Bonaventure shoots the ball a little better than Richmond, plays a little better defense, and does a better job on the boards. Also, we expect a bounce-back effort from the Bonnies, following a lousy performance last time out. Also, we don’t believe the Spiders can sweep St. Bonnie. So we’re betting the Bonnies here, minus the points.
Baylor rolled Houston Saturday and was able to rest key players in the second half. On the other hand, Gonzaga was taken to the limit by UCLA Saturday and may feel that Monday night. Plus, the Bears are getting a couple of buckets on the betting line. We're betting Baylor here, plus the points.
Gonzaga is just a super team, really good, fundamentally sound, mentally tough, unselfish, and fun to watch. UCLA, on the other hand, has probably been playing over its head the last couple of games, and that's tough to keep up. Now, two touchdowns is a ton of a line in a game at this level of the tournament, but the Bulldogs just keep winning by big margins. Heck, they let up against USC last time out and still won by 19. We're gonna give the points here with Gonzaga.
Gonzaga is basically a semi-pro basketball team, rolling through the college ranks; 28 of its 29 wins this season have come by double-digits. Meanwhile, USC is shooting 55 percent from the floor in this NCAA tournament, but we have serious doubts the Trojans will shoot anywhere close to that Tuesday night. This probably won't be a 20-point game, but ten would do it. We're giving the points here with the Zags.
Alabama's been superb all season while UCLA struggled a bit down the stretch, but we still feel these two teams are closer than the spread on this game might indicate. And the Pac-12 is having the best tournament of any conference in the country, with four teams in the Sweet 16. They might not win this game outright, but we're betting the Bruins plus the points here.
Loyola played Cinderella in 2018, but perhaps it's Oregon State's turn to take on that role. And the Pac-12 is putting on the best performance of any conference in this tournament, with four teams in the Sweet 16, two more than any other conference. The Beavers played 10-10 in the Pac-12 this season; one wonders what the Ramblers would have come in at. Plus, OSU's getting a touchdown. We're betting the Beavers here, plus the points.
LSU's playing some good ball lately while Michigan's down a man. And the Big Ten's already suffered some key losses in this tournament. Is it overrated? Our guess is the Wolverines win a close game here but the Tigers have a great chance at an upset. We like LSU and the points.
Baylor shot just 41 percent from the floor Friday; we expect a better performance Sunday. Wisconsin, on the other hand, shot 51 percent Friday and 13/27 from 3-point land; we don't expect a repeat of that performance anytime soon. We're betting the Bears here, minus the touchdown.
North Carolina is playing the better ball as of late, and if it can limit the turnovers, it might run away with this game. Wisconsin, meanwhile, struggled mightily against the big men of the Big Ten this season, and that doesn't bode well for this match-up. We're going with Carolina here.
Drake might be an interesting team in this tournament and a possible Sweet 16 candidate if it were at full-strength. Unfortunately, the Bulldogs will probably play this game without two of their top players. Wichita State, meanwhile, is 8-1 over its last nine games, and while the Shockers struggle at times to throw the ball in the hole, they've also held every opponent this season under 50 percent FG shooting. We like Wichita State here, giving the short spread.
Kentucky has the better resume hands down in conference play not only in their overall record but also in the quality of the wins. That said, UK finds itself in a dangerous spot tonight. They are off back to back wins over quality opponents and have a huge revenge game against Auburn on deck. The 6.5 point line is larger than their margin of victory in their last three, and the Aggies come into the match on a confidence-building three-game win streak. I'm going to bank on the home side staying within the number.