We only have a few days left before college hoops takes a short break. The slate for Monday, December 22nd, is loaded, and we’ve got to bet it. The good news is that we’ve dug through the slate, crunched the numbers, and found three college basketball picks that you’ll want to lock up. Let’s dig into it!
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College Basketball Preview, Picks, and Best Bets for December 22
Matt Dewoskin ATS College Basketball Picks Record (Est 11/3/2025)
All Selections: 86-59-2
Perfect 3-0 Cards: 9-40
Sacred Heart at Towson
Start Time: 2:00 PM EST
Sacred Heart comes into this game with a 5-7 overall record and a 2-6 mark on the road. The Pioneers are 6-5 overall against the spread and 4-4 ATS on the road.
Towson enters this matchup with a 7-5 overall record and a 4-0 record at home. The Tigers are 5-5 ATS overall and 1-1 ATS at home.
Metrics won’t tell the whole story due to the scheduling differences between these two teams. Towson has played Kansas, UCF, Liberty, and James Madison this year. Sacred Heart has spent time competing against low- and mid-major programs in the Northeast.
Towson plays a more physical style that is going to mess with Sacred Heart. The Tigers are much better on the inside and are capable of clamping down against a really mediocre Sacred Heart offense. Sacred Heart is also off a 22-point win over Dartmouth. The Pioneers are going to find that Towson is a lot tougher to score against than Dartmouth was. Let’s lock up Towson and lay the 10 points. Tigers win and cover this matchup.
Best Bet: Towson -10
Portland at UC-Santa Barbara
Start Time: 5:00 PM EST
Portland comes into this game with a 7-5 overall record and an 0-3 mark on the road. The Pilots are 4-6 ATS overall and 0-3 on the road this year.
UC-Santa Barbara enters this matchup with an 8-4 overall record and a 5-1 mark at home. The Gauchos are 3-7 ATS and 2-2 ATS at home.
Portland just got beat down at Oregon. Before that, the Pilots beat Kent State and a lower division opponent.
UC-Santa Barbara is off a losses at Green Bay and against Utah Valley in Salt Lake City. This is their first true home game since December 6th. This game is right before Christmas break, and the weather in California has been especially rainy. There may not be a ton of fans at this game. The arena is unlikely to be ‘lit’.
Portland actually has the better shooting team. They aren’t special from beyond the arc, but they can score in the paint. UC-Santa Barbara is really poor at defending the perimeter. Portland could find a few more open looks from deep than usual, and that could open up the post. UCSB doesn’t profile as an effective defensive team. Portland should be able to score and stay in this one.
UC-Santa Barbara likes to play at pace. That often leaves them prone on the defensive end. Portland can shoot well enough to hold up its end on offense, and should be able to disrupt enough on defense to keep this close. Let’s lock up Portland to stay within nine points of UC-Santa Barbara.
Best Bet: Portland +9
Northeastern at Rhode Island
Start Time: 7:00 PM EST
Northeastern comes into this matchup with a 4-6 overall record and a 2-4 record on the road. The Huskies are 6-4 against the spread and 4-2 ATS on the road.
Rhode Island enters this game with an 8-4 overall record and a 5-1 record at home. The Rams are 6-5-1 ATS overall and 3-2-1 ATS at home this year.
Northeastern has road wins at Colgate and Harvard. The Huskies also covered at Syracuse and Wake Forest.
Rhode Island best home win was a win and a cover against Brown. The Rams dropped a home game to Towson earlier in the year.
Rhode Island is clearly the better roster and playing at home, but Northeastern can handle the defensive end and is capable of scoring enough to stay competitive. Northeastern is the better rebounding team, especially on the offensive glass. Taking advantage of second chances will be a key to the game for the Huskies. Neither team is great from deep, but both can defend the perimeter. Don’t expect a barrage of threes from either team in this one.
Rhode Island is off a 17-point win over Canisius at home. Northeastern comes into this one off the road loss against Syracuse. The game script here will likely be a tight, chippy affair that will come down to the final few minutes. Northeastern has proven that they can hang with teams on the road and even clip teams on an off night. Northeastern’s defense has proven that it can keep the Huskies in games, and they’ll do enough on the defensive end to keep this one within 10.5 points. Let’s lock up Northeastern and the 10.5 points to cover.
Best Bet: Northeastern +10.5
Utah Tech at Creighton
Start Time: 8:00 PM EST
The College Basketball Experience
For more analysis on every college basketball game for the 2025-26 season, make sure you tune into The College Basketball Experience. Colby Dant, Moneyline Mac, and Noah Bieniek talk about each game on the entire slate. Listen for input on ATS and moneyline college basketball picks every night!
