Welcome to the first Saturday in February. And that means only one thing: March is on deck.
But before we get into the madness, there's plenty of betting value to be had with this slate.
Our staff has four best bets to help you formulate your college basketball card, so dive in below and get the top odds and picks, including Syracuse vs. Boston College.
Saturday's 4 College Basketball Best Bets
The team logos in the table below represent each of the matchups that our college basketball staff is targeting from Saturday's slate of games. Click the team logos for one the matchups below to navigate to a specific bet discussed in this article.
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| Specific bet recommendations come from the sportsbook offering preferred odds as of writing. Always shop for the best price using our NCAAB Odds page, which automatically surfaces the best lines for every game. | ||
Kansas vs. Iowa State
Saturday, Feb. 4 Noon ET ESPN |
Kansas -1  |
Kansas seems to finally be out of its shooting funk that caused it to lose three straight games, and I think this is another good spot to back it on Saturday.
What this game comes down to is if Iowa State can generate enough offense to keep up with Kansas.
I will admit Iowa State is an unbelievable defensive team, and it can take away a lot of what Kansas wants to do, which is pick-and-roll you to death. But Kansas is shooting the ball great right now after putting up over 40% from behind the arc against Kansas State.
What happens when Iowa State isn’t able to hold the Jayhawks in check?
The Cyclones are leading the Big 12 in 3-point percentage, but they also don’t take a very high number of 3-point shots, and they are actually a high frequency mid-range team.
In fact, their offense for the year has been very underwhelming. They are putting up 0.95 PPP in the half-court (297th). Also, they are 313th in FG% from mid-range jumpers, 258th in shot selection and 284th in spacing.
It’s just not a good offense, so the Clones are going to be very reliant on their defense in this game.
Kansas has won the last seven meetings against Iowa State, and I like the Jayhawks to make it eight on Saturday.
Pick: Kansas -1 (Play to -3) |
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Florida State vs. Louisville
Saturday, Feb. 4 2 p.m. ET ESPN2 |
Florida State -4  |
By D.J. James
Florida State is certainly not even close to the best team in a weak ACC, but it’s at least better against the spread than the 7-15 Louisville Cardinals.
In a matchup of cellar-dwellers, college basketball fans get to watch these two duel it out in the basement of the ACC.
Louisville is one of the worst teams in the country, let alone the ACC. The Cards are 3-19 on the season, ranking 309th in Adjusted Offensive Efficiency and 250th in Adjusted Defensive Efficiency.
Florida State at least ranks in the top 150 on offense (217th on defense).
Per ShotQuality, Florida State ranks 23rd in Open 3 Rate and 22nd in ShotQuality points per possession on Rim & 3 Rate. The Noles rank 85th in points per possession in finishing at the rim and second on off-the-dribble 3s.
Meanwhile, Louisville ranks 306th in Open 3 Rate and 223rd in ShotQuality Rim & 3 points per possession.
The only thing the Cardinals do well is get to the free-throw line at a 34.9% rate. Both of these teams tend to foul often, so the Cardinals will probably have a slight edge on getting to the line in this game.
That said, the Cards are allowing teams to shoot 34.6% from deep and 54.6% from 2-point range. Florida State is shooting 34.7% from deep and allowing teams to shoot 36.7% from 3 on it.
Louisville basically only can score efficiently from the line, so take the better offensive team amongst the two on the spread.
Pick: Florida State -4 (Play to -6.5) |
TCU vs. Oklahoma State
Saturday, Feb. 4 2 p.m. ET ESPN+ |
Oklahoma State -2  |
This is the game where I believe Mike Miles Jr.'s absence will catch up with the Horned Frogs.
Miles is the key to so much of what TCU does offensively, and Eddie Lampkin Jr. is also still a bit hobbled from his ankle injury.
Oklahoma State is one of the best defensive teams in the country, particularly at the rim thanks to the length of guys like Moussa Cisse and Kalib Boone.
The Pokes will make it very difficult for TCU to score in the half-court, and they should also hold the Frogs to just one shot on most trips.
Mike Boynton’s team is starting to gain consistency on the other end, going for 70+ in its last three outings and taking much better care of the ball.
Gallagher-Iba Arena should be rocking for this one, with the Cowboys fresh off a sweep of OU in Bedlam.
Look for Oklahoma State to build on the momentum and get it done here, taking another step towards getting back to the NCAA tournament.
Pick: Oklahoma State -2 (Play to -4) |
Syracuse vs. Boston College
Saturday, Feb. 4 5 p.m. ET ACCN |
Syracuse -1.5 |
Boston College is actually a pretty easy team to figure out. The Eagles have a good post-up defense and can score OK in transition behind Makai Ashton-Langford.
So, it’s pretty easy to figure out that this is a horrific matchup for the Eagles.
I have no clue how Boston College scores on the Jim Boeheim 2-3 zone.
Boston College doesn’t shoot 3s, doesn’t make 3s, can’t pass the ball without turning it over and can’t hit the offensive glass. And if Earl Grant wants to fall back on transition buckets, Syracuse is second in the ACC in transition points per possession allowed.
Syracuse will attack the rim on offense, but it’s mostly on off-screen, cutting sets. Syracuse also falls into plenty of mid-range and isolation sets.
Ultimately, Boston College can’t defend any set except post-ups, so Syracuse will run its stuff just fine.
Meanwhile, the Eagles will struggle to score 50 here.
Syracuse has won and covered five straight meetings against Boston College, including a 14-point win earlier this season. And the ShotQualityBets model makes the Orange 7.8-point favorites here.
All the stars are aligning for the Orange on Saturday, and I’ll happily bet them as a short road favorite.
Pick: Syracuse -1.5 (Play to -4.5) |
