College Basketball Best Bets for Monday: Matchups, Odds, Picks, and Predictions
Monday in college basketball features a number of top programs tuning up for more daunting opponents this upcoming weekend. We have highlighted the odds and our college basketball picks and best bets for Monday.
In Monday’s loaded slate, we look to capitalize on a couple of AP Top-10 teams in their final tune-up game before a marquee preseason tournament this weekend. How will UCLA and Baylor fare Monday ahead of a potential head-to-head meeting in Las Vegas on Sunday?
Here are our best bets for Monday’s college basketball slate (odds via DraftKings Sportsbook, FanDuel Sportsbook, and BetMGM; pick confidence based on a 1-to-5-star scale).
Monday’s College Basketball Schedule and Odds
(Odds via FanDuel)
- DePaul (-120) vs. Minnesota (+100)
- Butler (+205) vs. Penn State (-255)
- Holy Cross (+2500) vs. Creighton (-10000)
- Richmond (+120) vs. Charleston (-152)
- Norfolk State (+400) vs. UCLA (-4000)
- Northern Colorado (+4000) vs. Baylor (-30000)
Monday’s College Basketball Best Bets
- Moneyline: Butler vs. Penn State (-240 via FanDuel)
- Spread: Norfolk State vs. UCLA -20.5 (-110 via BetMGM)
- Total: Holy Cross-Creighton Over 144.5 (-110 via BetMGM)
- Upset: Richmond (+135 via DraftKings) vs. Charleston
- Prop bet: Baylor Over 91.5 points (-110 via DraftKings)
Top College Basketball Picks for Monday
Moneyline: Penn State (-240) ★★★★
It’s hard to get a great read on the type of team Butler will have this year after only one game, which was a blowout win over a New Orleans team outside the KenPom top 325. The Nittany Lions have dispatched their first two opponents Loyola MD (KenPom No. 237) and Winthrop (No. 163) by 25 points each.
Penn State’s early success has come as the team with the No. 17 adjusted offensive efficiency in the country has connected on 50% of its three-point attempts. Butler limited New Orleans to just 53 points, but Penn State will be another animal entirely for the Bulldogs, who are pegged by KenPom at No. 121 in adjusted defensive efficiency.
Penn State is 2-0 ATS this year and was 10-5 outright in home games last season, while Butler struggled away from Hinkle Fieldhouse, going just 3-8 in road games. I like KenPom’s No. 33 overall team to stay unbeaten at home Monday.
Spread: UCLA -20.5 (-110) ★★★★
UCLA is 2-0 on the young season, winning by 20-plus and covering the spread in both wins. Perhaps that was the expectation against undermanned Sacramento State, but maybe less of a certainty against a more capable Long Beach squad.
Monday is UCLA’s last tune-up before Friday’s Continental Tire Main Event tournament game against ranked Illinois out in Vegas. Though Norfolk State kept within 17 points of No. 5 Baylor in its last game, it’s difficult to fade the Bruins the way they’ve opened this campaign.
Norfolk State slots in eight spots lower in the KenPom rankings than the Long Beach team that UCLA blitzed by 24 on Friday. UCLA ranks ninth in the nation in adjusted offensive efficiency, 16th on the defensive side. The Bruins have cleared this margin of victory in both of their opening games. Bet the Bruins at DraftKings or BetMGM (-20.5) over FanDuel (-21.5).
Total: Holy Cross-Creighton Over 144.5 (-110) ★★★★
Not much scoring is expected on the Holy Cross side on Monday night as Creighton is the second-largest favorite of the day in college basketball. The Bluejays are -30.5 at FanDuel. BetMGM offers more favorable odds on the 144.5-point total if you’re betting the Over, as we are.
Creighton failed to clear that total in its opening game against St. Thomas as the Bluejays were a puzzling 8-for-34 from three-point range in a 72-60 win that was narrower than expected. Creighton fixed the shooting woes in its next game against North Dakota, a 96-61 win that gives hope to Monday’s Over.
With their adjusted offensive efficiency at 29th in the nation, the Jays should be able to replicate that shooting rhythm and again push for 90 points against Holy Cross’ No. 292 adjusted defensive efficiency. If the Crusaders push into the mid-50s, Creighton should do the rest to clear the total.
Upset: Richmond (+135) ★★★
Richmond is an underdog by anywhere from 2.5 to 3.5 points at Charleston on Monday night. That doesn’t make sense to me, and a quick glance at the KenPom rankings would be enough to question whether these sportsbooks accidentally flipped the spread.
But sure enough, across the board, the Spiders are underdogs. Part of the explanation for this could be the roster turnover Richmond experienced after its run to the Round of 32 in last year’s NCAA Tournament. But the Spiders are 2-0 (1-1 ATS) on the season.
Charleston’s role in this spread reacts to its impressive effort at No. 1 North Carolina. The Cougars led the top team in the nation, 50-43, at halftime before fading in the second half. For now, I’m siding with KenPom’s rankings that show Richmond at No. 79 while Charleston comes in at No. 188. A Charleston win here declares the Cougars weren’t a fluke at UNC, but I like the Spiders getting these friendly odds, especially at DraftKings.
Prop bet: Baylor team total Over 91.5 (-110) ★★★★
Though it was against the team with the second-worst defensive efficiency in the country, Baylor’s 117 points scored last Monday against Mississippi Valley State was impressive. The Bears scored 87 in a much closer contest in which Norfolk State’s No. 158 defensive efficiency at least kept things respectable.
There will be no respect shown by Baylor this Monday against Northern Colorado. Favored by 28 points, the Bears’ team total at DraftKings is 91.5. Though that’s a huge number, there’s no reason to believe Baylor should not blow by it as they gear up for Virginia in Friday’s Continental Tire Main Event in Vegas.
Northern Colorado is bad defensively (No. 301 in defensive efficiency) and plays a relatively quick tempo that should allow Baylor and its No. 2 offensive efficiency ranking in the country to see lots of opportunities in transition.
Where to Bet on College Basketball
Here are our top-rated sportsbooks:
College basketball best bets from 11/14/2022 at 1:03 p.m. ET.
Related Articles
