A loaded slate of men’s college basketball action awaits bettors today. Marquee matchups like Kansas State-Iowa State and Oklahoma State-Texas headline the packed card. Let’s dive into the odds to identify the best college basketball betting picks for Tuesday, Jan. 24.
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College Basketball Expert Betting Picks & Odds
Kentucky (-5.5) vs. Vanderbilt
Despite hitting the road, Kentucky continues to take money in a conference matchup against Vanderbilt. These programs are headed in different directions. The Commodores lost their best player, Liam Robbins, three games ago. Meanwhile, Kentucky seems to have found their optimal five-man lineup after benching Sahvir Wheeler. The moving parts for each team negate almost any advantage Vanderbilt may have here aside from home court.
Kentucky holds nearly every edge in the efficiency metrics. The Wildcats rank 35th in offensive efficiency, 95th in defensive efficiency and 16th in rebounding. Vanderbilt ranks 110th in offensive efficiency, 171st in defensive efficiency, and 42nd in rebounding. Without their best player, all of these numbers will likely regress.
Vanderbilt would have held an edge in height, but with 7-foot Robbins and 5-foot-9 Wheeler both off the floor, they won’t tonight. Oscar Tshiebwe finds himself in another smash spot, and Kentucky should continue to take money throughout the day. Our Insider Access Discord hit this number at Kentucky -4.
College Basketball Betting Pick: Kentucky -5.5 (-115) at BetMGM
Kansas State (+5.5) vs. Iowa State
One of the premier buy-low, sell-high spots in the Big 12, Kansas State travels to Iowa State as a 5.5-point underdog. Better yet, Iowa State has actually taken money, despite their coaching staff ruling guard Caleb Grill doubtful. With Iowa State ranking 194th in bench minutes and sixth in experience, Grill’s absence may affect Iowa State more than it would other teams. The bench minutes Iowa State does employ generally come from their merry-go-round at forward, not guard.
Aside from that, Iowa State sits at 5-2 within conference play. They started out 4-0 with double-digit wins over an LJ Cryer-less Baylor and Fardaws Aimaq-less Texas Tech. They also won by single digits against Oklahoma and TCU. Over their last three games, Iowa State fell to Kansas and Oklahoma State and narrowly beat Texas. While more of a macro trend, less talented teams that rely on experience generally perform better early in the season and regress down the stretch. The Cyclones have started to display these signs and may have to play without one of their main contributors.
Aside from narratives and injuries, Kansas State still holds several advantages. The Wildcats rank 54th in offensive efficiency, while Iowa State checks in at 90th. Iowa State does rank fourth in defensive efficiency, which edges Kansas State at 37th, but Iowa State ranks only 149th in interior defense, where Kansas State goes four deep now that David N’Guessan has returned from injury. Meanwhile, Kansas State actually has an edge in of turnover created. The Wildcats force turnovers at the fourth-highest rate and Iowa State ranks 273rd in turnovers committed. Waiting to grab a better number may make sense here, but this remains a solid buy-low spot for Kansas State.
College Basketball Betting Pick: Kansas State +5.5 (-110) at DraftKings
Missouri (+1.5) vs. Ole Miss
Missouri will travel to Oxford to take on Ole Miss for a battle at the bottom of the SEC. Injuries will have a significant effect on the outcome. Missouri played without their best player, Kobe Brown, over the weekend. Brown warmed up ahead of the game and Missouri’s head coach noted that the absence was precautionary. On the other side, Ole Miss’ Matthew Murrell suffered an injury during their most recent game. At this point, it seems likelier that Brown plays than Murrell does. Ultimately, both could end up taking the floor, but this game comes with some risk.
Outside of the injuries, this remains a chance to sell high on Ole Miss. After beating up on their weaker non-conference opponents, Ole Miss has just one win within conference play. They also lost against every non-conference opponent of note along the way. Meanwhile, Missouri has actually played competitive basketball against some of the SEC’s top competition, notching wins over Kentucky and Arkansas.
Missouri remains one of the better shooting teams in the country. The Tigers rank sixth in overall offensive efficiency. While Ole Miss ranks 68th in defensive efficiency, they rank 146th in perimeter defense, which Missouri can exploit tonight. Overall, Missouri remains the superior value to target here.
College Basketball Betting Pick: Missouri +1.5 (-110) at DraftKings
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