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College Basketball Picks: The Race for Selection Sunday

Teams are cramming to pad their resume as selection Sunday is just over two weeks away. The Big Ten’s regular-season title is just about secured as Maryland holds a two-game lead over four teams tied for second place with three games to go.

We’ll be talking about two of those teams tied for second place and which angle to wager on in that huge Big Ten matchup. In the Big East, it’s a little bit of a tighter race. Seton Hall only holds a one-game lead over Villanova and Creighton. Five of the top six teams in the conference will be playing today as the focus stays on the early games.

CBB Picks: Race for Selection Sunday

Providence (16-12) at 12 Villanova (22-6)

Spread: Nova -7.5

Over/Under: 137.5

Time: 12:00 p.m ET

TV: FOX

Villanova has been finding their stride at just the right time as they are on a five-game winning streak. The Wildcats are looking to tie things up with Seton Hall atop the Big East Conference. Nova is averaging just over 71 ppg in home conference games and loves shooting the three-ball as they rank 31st in the nation in 3PA.

Providence is coming off of a big win against Marquette at home but the Wildcats are a different story when it comes to the Friars. They have won at Wells Fargo Center since 2016. The Friars are facing a red hot Wildcat team that is clicking on all cylinders.

The Pick: Nova -7.5

16 Penn State (21-7) at 18 Iowa (19-9)

Spread: Iowa -4

Over/Under: 152

Time: 12:00 p.m ET

TV: Big Ten Network

Iowa has been unbeatable at home, Literally. They are 8-0 in conference home games and averaging a whopping 79.3 ppg in those games and currently one game back of a tie for second place. Hawkeyes have one of the best players in the country in Luka Garza. The Wooden Award candidate is nearly averaging a double-double and loves playing at home.

Penn State has a workhorse of their own in Lamar Stevens who has led the Nittany Lions to a 21-7 record and in a four-way tie for 2nd in the Big Ten. At this point in the season, Iowa is catching Penn State at the right time.

The Pick: Iowa -4.0

13 Seton Hall (20-7) at Marquette (18-9)

Spread: Marquette -2.0

Over/Under: 149.5

Time: 2:30 p.m ET

TV: Fox

Seton Hall is looking to sweep the season series against Marquette at Fiserv Forum. The Pirates are clinging on atop the Big East with a one-game lead over Villanova and Creighton. They have been a good team on the road as they only have one loss in road conference games and averaging 76.5 ppg in those games. This is going to be a great matchup between two of the best guards in the country in Myles Powell and Markus Howard.

Marquette has lost three of their last four games and is reeling. The one thing Marquette can do is score. The Golden Eagles are averaging 78.5 ppg in conference play. But, they are a lowly 1-6 when facing the top four teams in the conference. I think the Pirates will win this game outright so if you want to sprinkle in a little queso on the moneyline, feel free.

The Pick: Seton Hall +2

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College Basketball picks: Top 25 Games

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College basketball has been anything but consistent in this 2019-2020 season. Early on, the teams ranked number one couldn’t hold their ranking for more than a week. Today, there are three top-25 matchups that should be basically wrapping up the regular-season conference title with a win and Vegas never makes it easy with their on the money lines. But, we don’t shy away from big-time games, we wager on them.

Top-25 CBB Game Picks

3 Kansas (23-3) at 1 Baylor (24-1)

Spread: Baylor -1.5

Over/Under: 127.5

Time: 12:00 p.m ET

TV: ESPN

Kansas is looking to exact revenge at The Ferrell Center in Waco as Baylor has been the only team to knock off Kansas on their home floor and it wasn’t even close. Baylor dominated Kansas 67-55 back on January 11. But this has been a completely different Kansas team since then; rattling off 11 straight wins. Kansas has been averaging 73.8 ppg in February and is 6-0 in road conference games.

Baylor has been the most consistent team in college basketball this year and they’ve been one of the most profitable teams this year. Baylor comes in as the fourth-most profitable ATS at 16-6 according to The Action Network. This is setting up to be a great game with the top-ranked team at home against the third-ranked team that is the powerhouse of the Kansas Jayhawks.

The spread has been fluctuating since it opened up at -1.5 favoring the Bears at home and immediately was bet up to -2.5. The line has since been back down to -1.5 so significant money has been coming in on both sides. I’m looking at a total that has been bet down to 127.5 from 129.5 when betting opened. I would look to bet the over with the recent February scoring surge from Kansas; even up against the stifling Baylor defense.

The Pick: Over 127.5

14 Oregon (20-7) at 24 Arizona (19-7)

Spread: Arizona -4.5

Over/Under: 140

Time: 9:00 p.m ET

TV: ESPN

The second of three top 25 college basketball matchups is in the PAC-12 as Oregon visits Arizona at McKale Center. Oregon has been awful on the road in conference games with just a 2-5 record. In fact, they haven’t won a road conference game since January 30th at Cal. I don’t trust the Ducks here at all.

Meanwhile, Arizona has been great at home in conference play with a 5-1 record and averaging just over 78 ppg in those six games. These two teams faced each other back on January 9 with Oregon needing overtime to squeak out a victory against the Wildcats at home. This time, Arizona returns the favor.

The Pick: Arizona -4.5

2 Gonzaga (27-1) at 23 BYU (22-7)

Spread: Gonzaga -4.5

Over/Under: 158.5

Time: 10:00 pm ET

TV: ESPN2

Gonzaga is one of those teams where handicappers always try to find a game on their schedule where they are most susceptible to losing. That’s because year in and year out they are the standard in college basketball. This is the spot where most people have them losing and I just don’t see it.

Last Thursday they had their classic trap game at home against San Francisco and it was living up to its title in the first half as the Don’s were up 31-22 in Spokane. Only for Gonzaga to outscore San Fran 49-23 in the second half and win by 17 which ended up being an all-time bad beat with Gonzaga being favored by 16.5 points and covering on a last-second three.

Gonzaga is almost never a small favorite, they typically are a double-digit favorite which is why I tend to stay away from their games. The last time the Zags were this small of a favorite was on February 8 (-5) at St. Mary’s and ended up winning by 30 points. Both teams can really light up the scoreboard so I’m leaning towards the over. But, what I’m most confident in this game is the Bulldogs covering on the road.

The Pick: Gonzaga -4.5