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Top 3 College Basketball Odds, Picks & Predictions: Monday (1/6)

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For the most part around the country, the college basketball schedule has shifted from non-conference games to the beginning of league play.

That resulted in some thrilling matchups over the weekend, as Kentucky handed Florida its first loss in a shootout at Rupp Arena, while Alabama and Tennessee proved worthy of their top-five rankings in blowout home wins over top-25 teams.

Keep reading for a detailed breakdown of our college basketball best bets and top picks for Monday, January 6th.

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    Monday's Best College Basketball Bets

    (Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook)

    Wisconsin (-1.5) @ Rutgers (+1.5) | O/U 156.5 (-108/-112) 

    Rutgers started the year ranked in the AP Top 25 Men’s College Basketball Poll but has had some baffling results to this point in the season. The Scarlet Knights lost at Kennesaw State, needed overtime to eke out a one-point victory against Notre Dame and beat Penn State and Seton Hall by a combined seven points before losing to Princeton. And the Scarlet Knights seemingly never had a chance at Assembly Hall against Indiana in their last matchup, especially with freshman sensation Dylan Harper being ruled out surprisingly before tip-off.

    Rutgers has had difficulty staying in front of speedier guards on defense - an issue when facing a Badgers squad that scored a blistering 1.53 points per possession against Iowa. Wisconsin not only ranks 12th in adjusted offensive efficiency but turns opponents over at a 15.3% rate, which ranks outside the top 300.

    That should lead to a ton of points in this Big Ten matchup. And if the game remains close late, Wisconsin figures to do its part in adding to the scoring with the nation’s best free throw percentage (85.3%).

    Pick: Over 156.5 (-108)

    TCU (+18.5) @ Houston (-18.5) | O/U 128.5 (-108/-112) 

    TCU entered the week as one of the nation’s best transition denial teams, and they were forcing a late shot clock rate in the 98th percentile. However, TCU also struggles to score in the half court, being held to 63 or fewer points in two of its last four games.

    The Horned Frogs are a terrible free-throw shooting team (338th in the country) and struggle to score at the rim (48.6% two-point percentage). Those are death sentences against Kelvin Sampson’s Houston teams, especially this year’s squad that ranks either first or second in the country in adjusted defensive efficiency, effective field goal percentage defense, two-point percentage allowed and block rate.

    I have no lean on the point spread given this inflated number, even though the Horned Frogs covered a similarly big spread (15 points) in their last road game at Arizona. But the under is 12-4 in Houston’s last 16 games when it had one day of rest since 2020, and the tough prep for Sampson’s teams on short rest has me leaning toward the under as the best bet in this game.

    Pick: Under 128.5 (-112)

    Ohio State (-5) @ Minnesota (+5) | O/U 137 (-110/-110) 

    Ohio State was miserable away from Columbus to start the season, losing by 14 to Texas A&M, 24 to Maryland and 38 to Auburn in either true road games or neutral site games.

    However, Ohio State’s 20-point win against Kentucky at Madison Square Garden before the holidays changed the narrative on the Buckeyes playing away from home. I am backing them in this road matchup despite them coming off a seven-point home loss to Michigan State.

    Minnesota should have difficulty defending the perimeter, as Ohio State makes better than 38% of its three-point attempts (ranks in the top 30), while the Golden Gophers rank outside the top 200 in defending the three-point line. The Buckeyes, meanwhile, rank ninth in three-point percentage defense, and that perimeter prowess was on true display in holding Kentucky to 4-for-22 shooting from beyond the arc.

    Ohio State is 6-2 against the spread (ATS) when it has 2-3 days off this season, while Minnesota is one of the worst ATS teams in the country with a 1-11-2 ATS record thus far.

    Pick: Ohio State -5 (-110)

    Mike Spector is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Mike, check out his archive and follow him @MikeSpector01.

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