One of the most surprising teams at this point of the 2019-20 men’s college basketball season is the Virginia Cavaliers. They have built their reputation on an ironclad defense, which at times has handcuffed them. Last year, they won a national championship, but this year their shooting guards have not been all that great, and their point guard is undersized — as are their big men. However, they are one game out of first place in the ACC, and they beat Duke over the weekend. Another surprise is UCLA, who started the season 8-9, including a home loss to Cal-Fullerton. However, since January 15, they have been the top team in the Pac-12, with sweeps of Arizona and Colorado, and if they beat USC on the road, they will be at least co-conference regular season champs. Then there’s Providence. The Friars had a 6-2 record in February, beating Butler on the road and Marquette, Creighton and Seton Hall and home. Then they beat Villanova in Philadelphia on Saturday This is the same Providence team that has losses to Northwestern, Charleston, Penn and…Long Beach State. These are three teams that could be scary in the men’s tournament, even though they started the season looking like they were headed nowhere. Do you plan to include college hoops in your week’s sports betting? We have a pair of picks and College Basketball Odds for you as the regular season winds down.
NCAAB : Top Betting Picks of the Week – March 2nd 2020
Tuesday, March 3
Michigan State at Penn State (7:00 pm ET, ESPN)
Michigan State lost at home to Maryland a couple of weeks ago but has not lost since, beating Nebraska, Iowa and Maryland (this time on the road). Now they have a three-game winning streak as they head to State College to take on the Penn State Nittany Lions. In their win at Maryland, the Spartans ran out to a 17-5 lead and would not trail at all in Maryland’s first home loss of the season. Cassius Winston played almost 38 minutes and had 20 points, going five for six from downtown. He had seven turnovers, but he also had six assists.
Next up is another tough road game for the Spartans. Penn State has had a rough stretch, losing to Illinois and Indiana before beating Rutgers…and then losing to Iowa. In that loss to the Hawkeyes, Penn State was up 30-22 before Iowa went on a 13-4 run to go into halftime with a one-point lead. Then Iowa continued the barrage, pushing the advantage to 53-40 to make the total run 31-10, and Penn State could not recover. Lamar Stevens led the Nittany Lions with 20 points and ten boards, and Seth Lundy had 19. If Penn State wants to turn things around with Michigan State up next, their offense must recover its consistency.
NCAAB Betting Final Score Prediction: Michigan State 73, Penn State 69
Wednesday, March 4
Villanova at Seton Hall (8:30 pm ET, FS1)
Villanova had won five straight before losing to Providence at home, 58-54, on Saturday. That gave Providence five wins against ranked teams in February. It did not help that Villanova could not buy a basket from downtown, missing 21 of their first 24 attempts from behind the arc. Even so, the Wildcats stayed close the whole way despite going just two of nine from the free throw line in the second half. Collin Gillespie, who averages 15.5 points per game, went 1 for 6 and 0 for 2 from downtown. Saddiq Bey, the team’s leading scorer, fouled out at the 6:51 mark of the second half. Providence did not shoot well either, but Villanova must regroup heading to Seton Hall.
Seton Hall has won three in a row, beating Butler and St. John’s at home before going on the road to take down Marquette, 88-79, on Saturday. Sandro Mamukelashvili had a career best 26 points and nine rebounds, as Myles Powell led the team with 28 points. The Pirates led by as many as 24 points in the second half, but Marquette rallied to get within seven points with 34 seconds left. Given the way the Pirates’ offense is rolling right now, it’s hard to see them losing to Villanova.
NCAAB Betting Final Score Prediction: Seton Hall 77, Villanova 72
