NCAA Basketball Picks & Betting Analysis: Best Games This Week

The first week of college basketball is now in our rearview mirror, and we are steaming towards feast week. While the buy games are certainly not complete, we are now seeing some better or more balanced matchups throughout the amateur basketball landscape. Here are some games to look at wagering upon this week. Let’s get right to it so you don’t miss your chance to bet on the NCAA Basketball Lines.

College Basketball Top Betting Predictions for Nov. 14th to 17th Matches

Monday, November 14th: Northern Iowa vs Virginia

Typically the Virginia Cavaliers take their opponents outside of their comfort zone and limit their possessions. The rub here is that this is also the way that coach Ben Jacobson and Northern Iowa are accustomed to playing.

The Panthers boast a couple of third-year sophomores averaging double figures in Bowen Born and Nathan Heise, but neither has shot the ball particularly well this season. Northern Iowa ranks 341st in the nation in effective field goal percentage, while the Cavaliers rank 363rd in the nation in tempo.

Early indicators point to a total of roughly 126.5 points. This game has the potential to finish with the victor scoring in the high 50s.

Tuesday, November 15th: Marquette vs Purdue

As a rule, you never trust Shaka Smart. Before Smart even arrived at Marquette, rule number two was that you never trust the Golden Eagles.

However, when the trends favor it, maybe it’s time we take advantage. The spread for this game is projected to be Purdue (-10). For the sake of this article, we are going to compare the last season plus.

The Golden Eagles are 5-2-1 against the spread as a road underdog since Smart showed up and are outperforming the spread by +3.7 points per game.

The flip side to that coin is that since 2021 the Boilermakers are just 8-11 against the spread at home. While Purdue has an average margin of victory of +18.7 points per game, they are basically even on performance against the number at -0.1 per contest.

Obviously, most of those results came when Marquette boasted a young man named Justin Lewis, so proceed with caution.

Wednesday, November 16th: Michigan vs Pittsburgh

In a battle of the question marks, the Wolverines will take on the Panthers at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn for the Legends Classic. Pitt enters the game fresh off a thrashing at the hands of West Virginia, while Michigan survived a 30-point performance by Emoni Bates.

Pitt had about 17 seconds of hope heading into the season, but potential superstar guard Dior Johnson quickly found himself in legal trouble, and John Hugley suffered a knee injury in the preseason. The Panthers have yet to see a frontcourt player such as Hunter Dickinson, who has dominated thus far.

To make matters even grimmer, Pittsburgh finished the West Virginia game with a 0.36 assist-to-turnover ratio. Some will point to Michigan point guard play as a major weakness, but Princeton transfer Jaelin Llewellyn, a two-time All-Conference performer in the Ivy League, will eventually catch up.

This game’s projected spread is showing as Michigan (-8); the Wolverines should cover that easily.

Thursday, November 17th: Penn State vs Furman

While this game is labeled a neutral site game for the Shriners Classic, it is only a few hours away from the Furman campus in Charleston, SC

Paladins coach Bob Richey has been fantastic for the program, as Furman has won at least 20 games in four of his five seasons. Jalen Slawson returns this season along with guard Mike Bothwell to form one of the best duos in the SoCon, and it will be a nice early test for Penn State.

The Nittany Lions have not run into a whole lot of resistance so far this season, winning both games by 25 points and scoring over 90 in both. Furman’s defense has not been their strong suit over the last few seasons, so expect a high-scoring affair.

If the Furman crowd shows up for the game, and you should expect them to do so, this game could be worth a Paladin moneyline wager.