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College Basketball Odds & Best Bets Today: Schedule, Picks for Saturday

Mike Spector

Last Updated: January 14, 2023 4:05 AM EST • 2 min 62 sec read.

College basketball best bets.
College basketball best bets.

With college football done for the season, college basketball takes center stage to start the weekend. Read on for our college basketball best bets for Saturday based on the best NCAAB odds.

The two ranked vs. ranked matchups on Saturday’s slate are both from the Big 12 conference, as No. 11 Kansas State faces No. 17 TCU, and No. 2 Kansas hosts No. 14 Iowa State.

Here are our college basketball best bets for Saturday (odds via Caesars Sportsbook, FanDuel Sportsbook, DraftKings Sportsbook, and BetMGM; pick confidence based on a 1-to-5-star scale).

Check out our college basketball best bets, and our breakdown of the best March Madness odds and Wooden Award odds.

Saturday’s College Basketball Schedule and Odds

(odds via DraftKings)

  • Kentucky vs. Tennessee (-11.5)
  • Wisconsin vs. Indiana (-4)
  • Kansas State vs. TCU (-5)
  • Providence vs. Creighton (-7)
  • Iowa State vs. Kansas (-7.5)

College Basketball Best Bets for Saturday

  • Spread: Providence +7 (-110 via Caesars) vs. Creighton
  • Moneyline: Clemson (-120 via PointsBet) vs. Duke
  • Prop bet: Oscar Tshiebwe Under 14.5 points (-120 via DraftKings) vs. Tennessee
  • Upset: Miami (+140 via Caesars) vs. N.C. State

College Basketball Top Picks

Spread: Providence +7 vs. Creighton (-110) ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Providence is a four-star play, as the Friars have a significant scheduling advantage over Creighton in this game. The Bluejays are coming off arguably the most demanding back-to-back road games the Big East has to offer, losing by a combined 12 points at Connecticut and Xavier.

Though Creighton fought valiantly in both of those games, it will be a tough turnaround to play this third game in a week, especially with it getting little production from its bench (344th in bench minutes).

The Friars are one of two unbeaten teams in the league and will provide much more resistance than the three league opponents (Butler, DePaul, and Seton Hall) that Creighton beat by a combined 59 points at home before the losing streak began. 

This spread is as low as +5 at PointsBet, so we are getting tremendous value by making this play at Caesars.

Moneyline: Clemson ML vs. Duke (-120) ⭐⭐⭐

Clemson is 6-0 in ACC play for the first time since the conference was formed in 1953 and has serious aspirations of claiming its second-ever regular season title. The Tigers are built to limit one of Duke’s biggest strengths, as they are strong on the defensive glass (38th in offensive rebounding percentage allowed), while the Blue Devils secure 39% of their misses (fourth-most).

This is a three-star play, as head coach Brad Brownell has arguably the best 3-point shooting team in his tenure (38.9% ranks 12th in the country).

This line has already started to move in Clemson’s favor (-115 opening odds), and is up to -130 at some places.

Prop bet: Oscar Tshiebwe Under 14.5 points vs. Tennessee (-120) ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Kentucky has several issues, and its 10-6 record suggests an NCAA tournament berth is in serious jeopardy. That is especially true considering that nine of its 10 wins have come from Quad 3 and 4, and it is a combined 1-6 in Quad 1 and 2 games.

Among the Wildcats’ biggest issues is that reigning Player of the Year Oscar Tshiebwe has not looked like himself since returning from a preseason knee injury. Tshiebwe averaged 17.4 points and 15.1 rebounds last year but is down to 16.0 points and 13.1 rebounds. However, that does not tell the whole story, as he combined for 12 points on 5-of-19 shooting in games against two of the Wildcats’ best defensive opponents (UCLA and Alabama).

This is a solid four-star play, as Tennesee leads the country in adjusted defensive efficiency, effective field-goal percentage defense, and 3-point percentage allowed (20.9%).

Upset: Miami ML vs. N.C. State (+140) ⭐⭐⭐

N.C. State has won five of six games, including a 24-point home rout of Duke. This is an early ACC rematch as Miami beat the Wolfpack 80-73 at home on Dec. 10. In that game, the Hurricanes rallied from a 16-point first-half deficit and a 12-point second-half deficit.

This is a three-star play, as the Hurricanes have the experience (the 29th-most experienced team in the country) to win in a hostile environment. In addition, we would play this line all the way down to a pick’em (+100 ML odds), as Miami should build off its adjustments that held N.C. State to 37.9% shooting (11-of-29) in the second half.

This line has already come down to +130 at DraftKings, so be sure to lock in your wagers early at Caesars to get the best value on the underdogs.

College basketball best bets made 1/14/2023 at 7:06 a.m. ET.

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Written By:
Mike Spector
I have been in the sports writing industry for over three years, working for sites like BettingPros/FantasyPros, Oddschecker, and Sportsbook Review. In my first year writing for BettingPros, I finished with the #2 overall record in their annual NFL betting competition, which made picks against the spread, and from an over/under and moneyline perspective. I am an avid fan of the NFL, MLB, and all college sports. In my opinion, March Madness is the best sporting event there is, and I am especially euphoric starting with conference tournament time in college basketball. I am a big advocate of "fading the public" and making plays that are contrarian, constantly citing that "there are reasons why they have those big shiny buildings in Las Vegas." Follow me on Twitter for my best bets and commentary to go along with the wagers.