Skip to main content

Top College Basketball Picks for Tuesday

Mike Spector

Last Updated: November 30, 2021 2:31 AM EST • 2 min 30 sec read.

VILLANOVA, PA - NOVEMBER 17: Jordan Lyons #23 and Alex Hunter #10 of the Furman Paladins celebrate after defeating the Villanova Wildcats 76-68 in overtime at Finneran Pavilion on November 17, 2018 in Villanova, Pennsylvania. Rich Schultz/Getty Images/AFP (Photo by Rich Schultz / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)

There's a smaller college basketball schedule on the docket for Tuesday, but we've still found three against the spread and Over/Under picks that represent great profit opportunities.

The Top-25 action on Tuesday's college basketball slate is light, but that could mean a greater opportunity for bettors to gain an edge over the oddsmakers.

We analyze two of the less-heralded Big Ten and ACC Challenge games and break down a mismatch in a game involving one of the best teams from the Southern Conference. 

Here are my top picks for Tuesday’s college basketball schedule (odds via DraftKings Sportsbook; pick confidence based on a 1-to-5-star scale).

Top College Basketball Picks

Indiana vs. Syracuse +2.5 (-110) ?????Furman -8 (-110) vs. High Point ????Clemson vs. Rutgers Over 127.5 (-110) ???

SEE ALSO: All College Basketball Picks

College Basketball Predictions

Syracuse +2.5 (-110)

Syracuse and Indiana are seemingly headed in opposite directions. The Orange have lost three of their last four games while the Hoosiers are 6-0 and have won their previous three games by an average of 26 points per game. However, Syracuse presents issues for Indiana, and we expect a raucous Carrier Dome crowd to make the difference on Tuesday.

Indiana F Trayce Jackson-Davis is coming off a career-high 43-point effort against Marshall on Saturday. He is the focal point of the Hoosiers offense; however, Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim will morph his 2-3 zone to limit TJD's touches and force Indiana's backcourt to win the game. 

Indiana thrives on transition buckets, and Marshall was more than happy to push the pace with the Hoosiers under head coach Dan D'Antoni. Yet, the Hoosiers topped 76 points on just one other occasion. Their half-court offense is not yet polished.

As maligned as Syracuse is after its last four games, the Orange are still 21st in adjusted offensive efficiency. They're also making better than 38% of their 3-point attempts as a team. 

Indiana is 0-5-1 ATS in its last six road games, and Syracuse will add to the Hoosiers’ road woes.

Furman -8 (-110)

The Furman Paladins were picked second in the Southern Conference Preseason Coaches Poll, which is high praise considering the conference's depth this year.

Furman already has an impressive non-conference win at Louisville and nearly beat Belmont on the road three days later but came up short in overtime. The Paladins are led by two standout guards in seniors Mike Bothwell and Alex Hunter, and they will be the difference in this matchup against High Point. 

Furman is a deadly 3-point shooting team, connecting on 42.8% of long-range shots to rank seventh in the country. It will exploit a High Point defense that ranks 53rd in the nation in defending the 3-point line. In addition, the Paladins' weakness on the backboards (109th in offensive rebounding percentage allowed) will not be exposed by a small High Point team with one player over 6-foot-5 in the starting lineup.

Clemson-Rutgers Over 127.5 (-110)

The Clemson Tigers lost back-to-back games against St. Bonaventure and West Virginia while being held to an average of 62 PPG in those contests. However, those results do not take away from the efficiency at which Clemson has played on the offensive end. The Tigers rank eighth in the country in effective field goal percentage and have made 44.1% of their 3-point attempts to rank second in the nation. 

Rutgers is not the defensive team that St. Bonaventure or West Virginia is. The Scarlet Knights were torched for 85 points in their latest road loss to UMass, a game in which the Minutemen made 50% of their 32 3-point attempts. Look for Clemson's Nick Honor to improve upon his 4.3:1 assist-to-turnover ratio and consistently probe the Rutgers defense to find open shooters.

The Over is 4-1 in Clemson’s last five games following a straight-up win, and we like for this game to also exceed the projected total.

SEE ALSO: All picks and odds. Be sure to check out SportsbookReview.com’s community forums and betting tools.

College basketball picks made 11/30/2021 at 6:30 a.m. ET.

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.