College Basketball Best Bets Today: Expert Picks & Predictions for Saturday (Nov. 8)

Two of my college basketball best bets today are centered around the only game involving two AP top-15 teams, as No. 5 St. John’s hosts No. 15 Alabama.

The Crimson Tide-Red Storm matchup figures to be a track meet, which is why my college basketball predictions involve a player prop on St. John’s forward Zuby Ejiofor. I also add a pair of plays on totals, and feature my favorite ATS underdog play of the day.

🏀 Best college basketball bets today: Nov. 8

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

💰 Best college basketball predictions for Saturday

⬆️  Alabama vs. St. John’s prediction: Over 171.5 (-110 via BetMGM) ⭐⭐⭐⭐

St. John’s finished as the second-ranked team in adjusted defensive efficiency last season, and Rick Pitino’s teams are always going to pride themselves on how they play at that end of the floor. But the Red Storm are also going to full-court press all game and will not shy away from Alabama’s third-ranked tempo, which means we should be in for a shootout at Madison Square Garden.

Alabama still jacked up 46.6% of its shot attempts from beyond the arc despite playing an undersized North Dakota team in its season opener. It has big shoes to fill with Mark Sears no longer on the roster, but Labaron Philon looks up to the task. 

This would be a more confident five-star play had the line not spiked from O/U 168.5 to 171.5 overnight. Still, I am backing the Over through BetMGM’s -110 odds at a 52.38% implied probability in the hopes of netting $9.09 in profits on my $10 wager.

I break down the today's other ranked-ranked game in my Arkansas vs. Michigan State prediction.

⬇️  Zuby Ejiofor player prop: Under 8.5 rebounds (-110 via bet365) ⭐⭐⭐

St. John's forward Zuby Ejiofor is coming off a season where he was a First-Team All-Big East selection and the conference’s most improved player. He was a beast on the glass, ranking second in the conference in rebounds per game (8.1), while totaling a league-best 10 double-doubles.

While Ejiofor stands to pad his stats with offensive rebounds (his 4.4 offensive rebounds per game last season led Division I), this speculative three-star play is a product of Alabama’s propensity to shoot from deep, which should also lead to long rebounds.

bet365’s -110 odds carry a 52.38% implied probability, and would net $9.09 in profits on a winning $10 wager.

⬇️  Long Beach State vs. Fresno State prediction: Under 143.5 (-115 via DraftKings) ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Fresno State allowed a 92nd percentile transition rate last season, meaning that teams that generally wanted to push the pace against the Bulldogs could do so. But Fresno State is coming off a game against a South Carolina Upstate team that had a 98th percentile transition rate last season, and still held the Spartans to 67 points (albeit in a loss) in its previous home game.

Fresno State looks to have solved its main defensive issues from last year, and will still be a solid half-court defense in terms of defending pick-and-roll (allowing a 16th percentile pick-and-roll rate last year). 

The Under of 143.5 is worth DraftKings’ slightly extra -115 juice (at 53.49% implied odds), as the total is a half-point higher than other competing sportsbooks at 143. If the Under cashes, my $10 winning wager would return $8.70 in profits.

🔥 Oklahoma vs. Gonzaga prediction: Oklahoma +10.5 (-110 via FanDuel) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

This is a tough trip to Spokane for a Sooners team looking to gel under head coach Porter Moser. But Oklahoma has been fantastic early in each of the last two seasons, starting 10-0 in 2023 and 13-0 last year. 

Oklahoma lost do-it-all point guard Jeremiah Fears to the NBA, but don’t sleep on its transfer class that ranked eighth-best according to ESPN, while pulling four of the top 60 players available. 

Nijel Pack from Miami and Xzayvier Brown from St. Joseph’s are exactly the kind of grizzled veterans one needs in the backcourt to compete in a road environment against Mark Few’s squad. 

The Bulldogs have covered the spread in just 41.7% of their nonconference games in 2022, so I am backing the Sooners at any point spread in double digits.

This is still my most confident five-star college basketball prediction for Saturday, even though the line has come down from Oklahoma +11.5 overnight. FanDuel is the only one of our best sports betting sites offering a number as high as +10.5, as the Sooners are at +9.5 at the low end of the market.