Eight ranked teams are in action in college basketball on Wednesday evening, but Ky McKeon of Three Man Weave is diving deeper into the slate to find the best betting value.
Ky is targeting two mid-major affairs and an off-the-radar Big 12 matchup (as much as one can be).
So, get the top college basketball odds, best bets and picks for Wednesday below.
Wednesday's Three Man Weave College Basketball Best Bets
The team logos in the table below represent each of the matchups that Ky is targeting from Wednesday'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. | ||
UNC Wilmington vs. Charleston
Wednesday, Feb. 8 7 p.m. ET FloHoops |
UNC Wilmington +9.5  |
By Ky McKeon
Round two of the heated UNC Wilmington–Charleston rivalry tips off tonight in TD Arena. If this battle is even half as good as round one, we (or at least FloSports subscribers) are in for a treat.
UNCW looked overmatched at home in the first half, as Charleston opened a 15-point lead behind hot shooting. But the second half was all Wilmington, as the never-say-die Seahawks clawed and scrapped their way back to take a late lead before ultimately falling by two points.
Charleston head coach Pat Kelsey and UNCW head coach Takayo Siddle have faced each other four times over the past two seasons. Each game has been decided by less than 10 points, and two fell within a single possession.
Wilmington holds the series lead over that span, 3-1.
The Seahawks match up well with Charleston primarily because they are one of the few teams that can go toe-to-toe with the Cougars on the glass.
Charleston leads the CAA in offensive rebounding rate, but UNCW is a tremendous defensive rebounding squad and one of just two teams that has out-boarded Charleston this season.
UNCW also guards the perimeter as well as any team in the league.
Nobody has held opponents to a lower 3-point percentage in conference play, and while that can often be a sign of good fortune, the Seahawks’ backcourt is chock full of athletic, long, quick guards who make it extremely challenging to find clean looks.
Charleston attempts the highest rate of triples in the CAA, so shutting down the perimeter is must.
These teams are much closer than a nine-point spread suggests, despite UNCW likely missing starting forward Noah Ross.
No team in the CAA presents a bigger matchup challenge to Charleston, and history suggests this game will be nip-and-tuck the entire way.
As an added consideration, it doesn’t hurt that Siddle is 19-8-1 against the spread as an underdog over the past two seasons.
Pick: UNC Wilmington +9.5 (Play to +9) |
What is QuickSlip?
QuickSlip is an Action Network feature that allows users to automatically pre-load their bet slip at FanDuel Sportsbook.
Texas Tech vs. Oklahoma State
Wednesday, Feb. 8 8 p.m. ET ESPN+ |
Oklahoma State -6  |
By Ky McKeon
Few teams in the country are hotter than Oklahoma State right now. The Pokes are 5-1 straight up and against the spread over their past six games and have played themselves into NCAA tournament consideration.
On top of that, star center Moussa Cisse has returned from an injury that kept him sidelined for four games and limited in three more.
In the four games Cisse missed entirely, OSU went 0-4 straight up and against the spread.
OSU will be missing the services of Avery Anderson III, who is unfortunately done for the year. But the Pokes have held their own without Anderson on the floor and recently took down a tough TCU squad with him on the pine.
Texas Tech is in bigger trouble from an injury perspective. Freshman guard Pop Isaacs has missed the past three contests, and head coach Mark Adams implied yesterday he likely misses another tonight.
Utah Valley transfer Fardaws Aimaq is also likely still out.
Without a fully healthy roster, Tech has struggled all season long, especially on the road. The Red Raiders have just one true road win this season (zero in Big 12 play) and are 2-3-1 against the spread (1-3-1 in the Big 12).
Gallagher-Iba Arena is not an easy place to play, as Iowa State, TCU and West Virginia have discovered. The Pokes protect their home floor and are 9-3 ATS in Stillwater this season.
Without Isaacs, Tech is in deep trouble on offense. The Raiders are the Big 12’s second-worst offensive squad this season, driven by the league’s worst turnover rate and effective field goal percentage.
Taking away one of the primary ball-handlers and scoring options doesn’t seem like the remedy to those offensive woes.
To boot, OSU’s defense has locked down in conference play, especially with Cisse in the fold. No team has allowed a lower 2-point conversion rate, and the Cowboys force turnovers at one of the highest rates in the league.
Oklahoma State’s long perimeter will wreak havoc on Texas Tech's ball-handlers, and enforcers like Cisse and Kalib Boone will have the interior securely defended.
While OSU hasn’t been the bastion of offensive success this year, everyone has found ways to score against Texas Tech’s defense, which ranks as the worst in the Big 12 by a fair margin.
Pick: Oklahoma State -6 |
New Mexico State vs. Grand Canyon
Wednesday, Feb. 8 9 p.m. ET ESPN+ |
New Mexico State +7  |
By Ky McKeon
“Better late than never” is an old adage that seems to fit New Mexico State’s basketball season to a T.
The Aggies were picked to finish second in the WAC this preseason, and many expected them to capture the conference crown. On paper, NMSU boasts arguably the most talent in the league.
But all of that talent couldn’t prevent a nine-game conference losing streak that spanned the length of 30 days, so the Aggies currently sit alone in the WAC’s basement.
February has brought new hope for the Aggies’ season. NMSU took down two of the top teams in the league in consecutive games, downing Stephen F. Austin and Seattle at home by six and seven points, respectively.
The results were a reminder of just how good this team can be when firing on all cylinders.
Tonight, NMSU looks to upset another top-tier WAC squad, and it looks to do it at arguably the toughest place to play in the league.
Grand Canyon’s home environment is known for its sell-outs and raucous student section, but NMSU has had plenty of success there over the years, including a 16-point win in Phoenix last season.
GCU hasn’t been the same since star point guard Jovan Blacksher went down with a season-ending injury. The Lopes are just 4-4 straight up and 1-6 against the spread without Blacksher.
His impact has been felt on both ends of the floor, but the Lopes have particularly struggled on the defensive end during his absence.
Grand Canyon has been unable to disrupt ball handlers, and all the backcourt production on the other end has been shifted squarely onto Ray Harrison’s shoulders.
NMSU’s defense hasn’t exactly been terrific either, but it has vastly improved over the past three games.
It always seemed that the Aggies’ primary problem this season has been related to effort, which has ratcheted up a few notches since head coach Greg Heiar tinkered with his rotations.
To stop GCU, the Aggies need to box out consistently and pray Harrison and Co. have cold shooting nights. NMSU packs it in defensively, and while this works from a rebounding perspective and allows it to seal off the paint, it leaves the perimeter vulnerable.
No team has allowed a higher rate of 3-point attempts in conference play, which is scary considering how well the Lopes can shoot the rock.
Heiar is no dummy, so his game plan will likely be tweaked to account for the Lopes’ outside shooting.
On paper, there’s no reason NMSU can’t lock down the arc. With Anthony Roy taking Xavier Pinson’s spot in the starting lineup, the Aggies won’t have anybody shorter than 6-foot-5 on the floor at tip-off.
That length should hopefully bother the Lopes’ shooters.
We’re hoping NMSU’s recent hot streak is not just a flash in the pan and the Aggies can stick around within a couple possessions at GCU Arena.
Pick: New Mexico State +7 |
