The chaos at the top of men’s college basketball continued last week. Teams in the Associated Press top five rankings lost six times, as Duke, Auburn and Butler each took a pair of setbacks. That had not happened since 1994. This season, through 11 weeks, 14 teams in the AP top five have lost to unranked opponents; 64 teams in the top 25 have lost to unranked opponents.
All signs are moving toward a tournament that has an unusual amount of upsets. It would be hard to match the 2018 men’s tournament, when 16-seed Maryland-Baltimore County took down 1-seed Virginia and 11-seed Loyola-Chicago (followed by Sister Jean) rolled all the way to the Final Four. What we have on our hands is another tumultuous campaign, and if you find yourself on the right side of the right point spread, you can rake in the cash. If NCAAB is part of your sports betting for this week, don’t miss our top two college basketball betting picks.
Top College Basketball Betting Picks of the Week – January 13th Edition
Memphis is No. 18 in the updated @CBSSports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings. https://t.co/X6dRR4zrdY
— 929ESPN (@929espn) January 21, 2020
Wednesday, January 22th
Memphis at Tulsa (9:00 pm ET, ESPNU)
Memphis comes in with a 3-1 record in AAC play, with their lone loss coming at Wichita State. They responded to that loss by barely escaping South Florida with a win over the hapless Bulls, but then they looked impressive in an 11-point win over Cincinnati on Thursday. In that game, the teams went back and forth before Memphis went on an extended run to take the game. D.J. Jeffries scored 18 points, and Precious Achiuwa chipped in a dozen points and 11 boards. Lester Quinones also hit double figures with 13 points, including seven in the last five minutes.
Next for the Tigers is a trip to Tulsa to take on the Golden Hurricane. Tulsa is 4-1 in AAC play, with their lone loss coming at Cincinnati — by 31 points. Since then, they have beaten Houston, East Carolina and Tulane. That win over the Green Wave came by 13 on the road on Saturday, behind 19 points from Martins Igbanu and a 59 percent shooting night for the team. Jeriah Horne put up 16 points, and Brandon Rachal scored 16 points and grabbed seven boards. The defense limited Tulane to 28 points in the second half. Can Tulsa keep things going against Memphis?
College Basketball Betting Prediction: Memphis 69, Tulsa 64
Thursday, January 23rd
USC at Oregon (11:00 pm ET, ESPNU)
USC is 4-1 in Pac-12 play, having followed up a 32-point loss at Washington with victories over UCLA, Cal and Stanford, and the Trojans have now won nine of their last ten overall. That win over Stanford came in overtime after the Trojans came back from a 20-point deficit at halftime. Oneyka Okongwu put up 22 points for USC, and Elijah Weaver was the hero in regulation, nailing a three-ball to tie the game up. Weaver kept going in the extra frame, scoring eight of the Trojans’ 13 points, putting up 13 points for the game.
Next up for the Trojans is a trip to Oregon. The Ducks are 4-2 in Pac-12 play, but they have a win over the same Washington Huskies who beat USC by 32. On Saturday, Oregon clawed their way back from a 16-point deficit in the second half to beat Washington on the road, thanks to a 30-point three-ball from Payton Pritchard with 3.4 seconds left in overtime. This was not Oregon’s largest comeback of the season; they came back from 19 down to defeat Seton Hall. However, this was a big boost after losing in ugly fashion to Washington State two days before. Can the Ducks defend their home court against a hot USC team?
College Basketball Betting Prediction: Oregon 74, USC 71
