College Basketball Best Bets & Player Props Today: Expert Picks for Thanksgiving (Nov. 27)

Of the 20 games on the Thanksgiving college basketball slate, my college basketball best bets and player props today focus on four of the games involving ranked teams, as I look to build on a hugely profitable 10-2 run through the last three days of Feast Week.

My college basketball expert picks include an ATS play on a Fort Myers Tip-Off matchup between two of the sport’s biggest blue bloods in No. 16 North Carolina and No. 11 Michigan State. I also break down a highly anticipated ranked vs. ranked matchup between No. 4 Duke and No. 22 Arkansas at the CBS Sports Thanksgiving Classic.

This matchups is a part of Feast Week, and you can stay on top of all the hoops action this Thanksgiving with our college basketball Feast Week guide.

🏀 College basketball best bets & player props: Nov. 27

See all of our experts' college basketball picks based on the latest college basketball odds.

💰 College basketball expert picks today

⬇️  TCU vs. Florida prediction: Under 154.5 (-108 via DraftKings) ⭐⭐⭐⭐

TCU has two losses on the season, but one is a respectable 67-63 loss to No. 7 Michigan. If you saw what Michigan did in the Players Era Festival this week, you would know how much of an accomplishment it was to hold the Wolverines to 67 points.

The Horned Frogs are susceptible to pick-and-roll operators that can create their own shot. But so far this year, the Gators do not have those alphas in their backcourt.

The Gators have been atrocious from 3-point range (25.7%), while TCU has the capable rim protection ranking 30th in 2-point percentage allowed to deal with Florida’s massive frontcourt.

DraftKings is the only one of our best sports betting sites charging less than the standard -110 juice to back the Under. Its -108 odds carry a 51.92% implied probability, and would net $9.26 on a winning $10 wager.

🟢  North Carolina vs. Michigan State prediction: Michigan State first half spread -1.5 (-110 via DraftKings) ⭐⭐⭐⭐

North Carolina and Michigan State are a combined 12-0, but the Tar Heels in particular have been playing with fire thanks to several slow starts in their biggest games.

North Carolina trailed Kansas by eight points at halftime on its home floor and was losing to Radford by three points after 10 minutes in the following game. In their last two games, the Tar Heels have led Navy and St. Bonaventure, two teams ranked outside KenPom’s top 120, by a combined nine points at halftime.

Meanwhile, Michigan State has only trailed once at the half all season and raced out to a 17-point lead over Kentucky at the Champions Classic in its toughest test to date. The Spartans assisted on 25 of their 32 made field goals in that game, and Tom Izzo’s squad, which leads the country in assist rate, will be difficult to stop early. 

If Michigan State leads by two or more points at halftime, my $10 winning wager through DraftKings’ -110 odds would net $9.09 in profits.

⛹️ College basketball player props today

⬇️  Richie Saunders, F, BYU: Under 1.5 assists (+155 via bet365) ⭐⭐⭐

To this point, BYU’s offense has been dominated by AJ Dybantsa and Robert Wright, as those two have been relied upon for their one-on-one playmaking ability.

Last year, the Cougars' offense, led by current Brooklyn Net Egor Demin and transfer Dallin Hall (now with Virginia), assisted on nearly 60% of its made field goals (top-32). This year’s team ranks 309th with a 44.5% assist rate. For a historical perspective, in the last 10 NCAA tournaments, only 28 teams advanced to the Sweet 16 that had an assist rate under 50%.

Against UConn, BYU did not record an assist for the first 17:45 of the game. With nothing to suggest the offense will not once again flow heavily through Wright and Dybantsa, I am banking on Saunders to record one or fewer assists for the second time in six games (he has not recorded more than two assists in a game this year).

If my $10 wager cashes through bet365’s +155 odds, I would net $15.50 in profits.

⬇️  Cameron Boozer, F, Duke: Under 24.5 points (-115 via bet365) ⭐⭐⭐

This is the first of three straight games against ranked opponents for Duke. If this game goes anything like the first two against ranked opponents for Cameron Boozer, he should stay well below this projected points total.

In the season opener against Texas, Boozer started 0-for-7with three rebounds in the first half, and finished 3-of-12 from the field. He also shot 41% from the field while finishing with 18 points.

As a whole for the season, Boozer is shooting just 54.9% from the field, which suggests he will have difficulty surpassing this total unless he gets to the free throw line often. 

The -115 odds at bet365 carry a 53.49% implied probability, and would net $8.70 in profits on a $10 wager if the Under cashes.