THIS. IS. MARCH. The NCAA college basketball regular season is coming to a close. We will be moving onto conference tournaments and then right into the Big Dance after these last few games. Don’t be fooled however, these final games of the season are going to be thrilling. We have a loaded slate of games this Saturday. Let’s take a closer look and dive into some of these games and pick our college basketball best bets of the day.
CBB Picks: College Basketball Best Bets for Saturday, March 5th
College Basketball Picks: Arkansas vs Tennessee
Time: 12:00 p.m. EST
TV: ESPN
Spread: Tennessee -6, Over/Under 139.5
We have ourselves an exciting SEC match-up here. Both of these teams are closing out their seasons strong. Arkansas has won 14 of their last 15 games with their only loss being to Alabama by one on the road. On the other hand, Tennessee has won eight of their last nine with their only loss being to the Razorbacks by 10 on the road.
Arkansas is a stacked team led by one of my favorite coaches in the country, Eric Musselman. I believe he knows how to get his players pumped up and ready for these big games. JD Notae has been amazing this season averaging nearly 19 points per game. The Razorbacks have a fairly deep team which will benefit them when the starters need to rest. I like Arkansas catching the points in this spot.
Pick: Arkansas +6
College Basketball Picks: Alabama vs LSU
Time: 12:00 p.m. EST
TV: CBS
Spread: LSU -4, Over/Under 152
Let’s keep it in the SEC and take a look at this game. These two teams have possibly been the hardest for me to figure out all year. I believed in Alabama in the beginning of the season and they just could not get the job done. A couple weeks later I started backing LSU and they were just losing games outright. This is a grudge game for me.
In this situation, I’m personally looking at Alabama catching the points. Jaden Shackelford and Jahvon Quinerly are so exciting to watch when they’re in the zone. I’ve said this so many times this year, but if this Alabama team catches fire and can knock down their threes, the opponent just will not be able to catch up. With that being said, LSU is actually slightly better from deep this season. I may be stubbornly backing Alabama to prove that theory right, but I do like them catching points tonight.
Pick: Alabama +4
College Basketball Picks: Miami vs Syracuse
Time: 1:00 p.m. EST
TV: ESPNU
Spread: Syracuse -2, Over/Under 154.5
I think this is going to be a tight ACC battle in New York. It may be recency bias, but I love Miami here. The Hurricanes have covered five of their last seven games. Syracuse has covered two of their last six. Syracuse has struggled all season sitting at a 15-15 record before finalizing their season tonight. Miami went on a hot streak early in the season winning 9 straight including wins over Duke and Wake Forest.
I love the backcourt combo of Kameron McGusty and Isaiah Wong. While they are obviously not the only two prolific players on this team, this duo is strong enough to get Miami the lead in this one and hold onto it until the final whistle. Even though Miami is the underdog in this game, I think they’ll end up winning this game outright.
Pick: Miami +2
College Basketball Picks: Texas Tech vs Oklahoma State
Time: 3:00 p.m. EST
TV: B12/ESPN+
Spread: Texas Tech -2.5, Over/Under 128
I’m honestly a little confused by this line. I feel like Texas Tech is by far the better team in this contest. The Red Raiders have faced some tough competition this year yet have sustained a top 25 ranking by taking these teams out. Oklahoma State has been such a roller coaster this year that it is hard to put my trust in them.
Texas Tech’s Bryson Williams has been a key factor in this team’s success. Standing at 6’8, it is hard to defend him. He gets his way and has been scoring 14 points per game. Texas Tech’s defense is also hard to score on. They are sitting at 14th in the country allowing only 61 points per game.
I am a little scared of this line but you have to trust your gut sometimes and take what you like.
Pick: Texas Tech -2.5
College Basketball Picks: UNC vs Duke
Time: 6:00 p.m. EST
TV: ESPN
Spread: Duke -12.5, Over/Under
Do we really think that UNC is going to stroll into Cameron Indoor and put up a fight? It’s Coach K’s last home game. Every single Duke player that has been under Coach K is invited tonight, this is going to be a blowout. Duke is going to make this a statement win, this is the best rivalry in sports, and everyone knows Duke is the better team.
I’d love to see UNC get inside and try and score on Mark Williams. Williams is averaging three blocks a game, you just cannot get past him. Duke has weapons at every position, most notably Paolo Banchero. We all know how good Banchero is, but we have to touch on him. He is averaging 17 points per game along with eight rebounds. There isn’t much Banchero can’t do for this squad.
Looking at UNC, they do have strong pieces in Armando Bacot and Caleb Love. They will definitely try to keep this game close but ultimately, the Blue Devils are taking care of the job tonight. There is no way Duke will let Coach K’s last regular season game of his career be a loss to UNC.
This is my college basketball best bet of the night.
Pick: Duke -12.5
Make sure you check out the entire SGPN crew’s college basketball best bets here! Here at SGPN, we strive to provide everyone with our best bets and make it a priority to win every game!
