College Basketball Odds, Picks & Predictions: Tuesday (11/5)
The 2024-25 NCAA Men’s College Basketball season is underway, and we have 11 games on the slate, starting with three games at 7 p.m. ET, three more games at 8 p.m. ET, two more tips at 9 p.m. ET, and three others at 10 p.m. ET. We don’t have any ranked teams on the schedule, but there are some interesting games nonetheless.
Let’s get that bankroll in the black with our best College Basketball picks for Tuesday, Nov. 5.
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Tuesday’s Best College Basketball Picks
Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook | All picks are for 1 unit
New Orleans Privateers (+4000) at Kansas State Wildcats (-10000) | O/U 146.5 (-110/-110)
The New Orleans Privateers and Kansas State Wildcats open the 2024-25 campaign on Tuesday night at Bramlage Coliseum in Manhattan, Kan.
Last season, UNO was one of my favorite teams. This is a team that struggles mightily on defense, especially against teams with a size difference. The Privateers should be overwhelmed against the Big 12 conference members. The Privateers faced Oklahoma State on Nov. 20, and UNO lost 96-68 as a 13.5-point underdog while the Over (145.5) cashed. When they faced Minnesota on Nov. 30, a Big Ten team, the Privateers were dominated 97-64 as a 12.5-point ‘dog while the Over (150.5) cashed. Against Ohio State, the Privateers lost by 38. And, this was a much better team. The current installment of New Orleans basketball is expected to finish near the bottom of the Southland Conference.
Kansas State is expected to be in the middle of the pack in the new-look Big 12. Head coach Jerome Tang has stockpiled some serious talent after missing the NCAA Tournament in a disappointing, injury-plagued season. Coleman Hawkins comes over from Illinois to provide size, and Achor Achor, Dug McDaniel, and Ugonna Onyenso give the new-look Wildcats plenty of talent.
A spread of -28.5 is quite high. We’ll avoid that for now, although it’s certainly easy to see K-State potentially covering, but the best play is going Over.
Picks: Over 146.5 Points (-110)
Cal Poly Mustangs (+2200) at San Francisco Dons (-8000) | O/U 149.5 (-110/-110)
In a Golden State battle, the Mustangs of Cal Poly open the season with a quick trip over to San Francisco for a battle with the Dons.
Cal Poly is expected to be a cellar dweller in the Big West Conference. Last season, the Mustangs didn’t even qualify for the Big West Tournament, and they’re breaking in a new coach. Mike DeGeorge is the new head coach, and he likes his teams to get out and run. However, it remains to be seen if he has the personnel to do that just yet. The Mustangs do return six letter winners, but that isn’t necessarily a good thing from a team that won just four games in 2023-24.
This is just the fifth time these teams have met as Division I opponents. These teams opened against each other in 2022, with USF picking up a low-scoring 60-48 win. Cal Poly won 79-71 back on Dec. 15, 2014, in its most recent victory in the series.
For San Francisco, it might not quite be on the same level as Gonzaga, a team in the preseason Top 10, but the Dons should be in the top half of the conference. Head coach Chris Gerlufsen has a powerful backcourt with all-conference guard Marcus Williams, as well as conference freshman of the year Ryan Beasley and Malik Thomas. This is a team that could run, run, and run some more, and that’s what Cal Poly wants to do, too. We could see a fast-paced game right out of the gate.
Picks: Over 149.5 Points (-110)
Daniel E. Dobish is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Daniel, check out his archive and follow him @danieledobish.