The Temple Owls take on the Villanova Wildcats in Bryn Mawr, PA. Tip-off is set for 6:30 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1.
Villanova is favored by -12.5 points on the spread with a moneyline of -1100. The game total is set at 149 points.
Here’s my Temple vs. Villanova prediction and college basketball picks for December 1, 2025.
Temple vs Villanova Prediction
My Pick: Under 149.5 (Play to 148)
My Temple vs Villanova best bet is on the under. For all of your college basketball bets, be sure to find the best lines by using our live NCAAB odds page.
Temple vs. Villanova Odds, Spread
| Temple Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+12.5 -110 | 149 -110o / -110u | +700 |
| Villanova Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-12.5 -110 | 149 -110o / -110u | -1100 |
- Temple vs Villanova spread: Villanova -12.5
- Temple vs Villanova over/under: 149 points
- Temple vs Villanova moneyline: Temple +700, Villanova -1100
Temple vs Villanova NCAAB Betting Preview
Temple Basketball
Temple is off to a fairly uninspiring start. The Owls enter this contest with a 4-3 record, with all three losses coming to the three highest-rated opponents they've played, per KenPom (Boston College, UC San Diego, Rhode Island).
The Owls will need to match Villanova's tempo to keep this game close. Traditionally, Adam Fisher deploys a slower pace, so this game should mainly be a half-court slog.
Temple is a much better offensive team than defensive team, which is largely a byproduct of its strong guard play.
Four Temple players average double-digits, led by Derrian Ford with 16 points per game and Aidan Tobiason with 15 points a night. At times, the number of shot creators Temple has is a curse because the ball can get stuck. As a result, the Owls are 236th in KenPom's assist rate metric.
The good news is they seldom turn the ball over, ranking third nationally with a 12.4% turnover rate.
A lot of Temple's offensive success stems from trips to the free-throw line, which Villanova could take away. The Wildcats rank 60th in KenPom's FTA/FGA metric on defense, while Temple is 15th in the same metric but on the offensive side.
I'll credit a lot of the Temple numbers to playing brutal defensive teams, which has led to fouls.
Defensively, the Owls rank 298th in defensive efficiency. They offer no on-ball pressure and have bad backcourt defense, leading to their 13% turnover rate. The threat of taking the ball away isn't there.
Teams are efficient from 2-point (54%) and 3-point range (38.8%) against them.
However, despite their lack of size, the Owls are eighth in defensive rebounding rate. That'll help in this matchup, but I'm eager to see which number is more legit: Nova's offensive rebounding numbers or Temple's defensive rebounding ones.
Villanova Basketball
Villanova is a very quiet 5-1 and has jumped all the way to No. 42 in KenPom. The Wildcats have taken advantage of a largely unchallenging schedule, hammering their last five foes by 14+ points.
The shorthanded Wildcats beat Old Dominion their last time out, 89-75. It’s worth noting that Villanova greatly missed the presence of Duke Brennan, who leads the nation in rebounds per game. He has an ankle sprain, so I’m curious if Kevin Willard pushes his big man less than two weeks post-injury.
Brennan has a case as Villanova’s early-season MVP. His effort and rebounding ability are the reasons why the Wildcats have a 44% offensive rebound rate. Without him, they had just nine offensive rebounds and beat Old Dominion just 34-29 in the overall rebound battle.
Kevin Willard wants his team to play slow and for his guards to rise and fire from downtown. The Wildcats are 328th in adjusted tempo, which is more in line with Willard’s career, making last year at Maryland an outlier.
From a shooting standpoint, the Wildcats attempt 3s on 45% of their field goal attempts. Three of the five Villanova starters detest shooting the ball closer than the 3-point line.
Bryce Lindsay, the team’s leading scorer, is a stone-cold sniper, rattling in 47% of his 46 3s.
Belgium freshman Matt Hodge adds floor-stretching next to the non-shooting Brennan, though he’s efficient in limited 2-point attempts.
Tyler Perkins is the lone returnee from the Kyle Neptune era, and he’s down to 30% from deep this year.
One name I didn’t mention is freshman stud Acaden Lewis. That’s because his ability to touch the paint and dish to shooters is uncanny. Lewis performs well beyond his years and looks the part of a star freshman guard.
On the defensive end, Villanova has gotten stung by perimeter jumper. Opposing teams shoot a jarring 41% from deep against it, placing it in the bottom five in 3-point defense.
Temple vs. Villanova Betting Analysis
I'm looking at the under here.
Villanova and Temple are more deliberate offensive units.
Plus, if the free throws are taken away, Temple could struggle to generate offense.
This has the makings of a rock fight from Nova's end, and that should lead to an under.
My Pick: Under 149.5 (Play to 148)
