College Basketball’s Best Bets December 20th: Our Picks for #1 Baylor, #3 Purdue, and #5 Gonzaga

Not a ton of games, but tons of great action ahead of Monday. Coming off an amazing day of great and competitive matchups yesterday, we hope there is as much excitement today. Tons of NCAAB odds available, but we were going to take a look at three major spreads in particular. First let’s take a look at what happened Sunday. 

Sunday started with an easy pick between #11 Iowa State against SE Louisiana. A close game in the first half, but the Cyclones took over in the 2nd half to secure the 77-54 win. Next was was #17 Auburn taking on Stanford. It was a great game where Texas pulled away to win, but there was a lot less scoring than expected. Finally the pick of the night Kansas State took on Nebraska in a great game. Kansas State was able to secure the victory in a 67-58 win. 

Now let’s take a look for the best bets ahead of Monday. 

Alcorn State vs. #1 Bayor 

The Bet: Baylor -33.5 

The best team in the country takes the court again for the second time in three days. They take on a struggling Alcorn State, who should stand no chance against the Bears. 

Baylor is easily the best team in the nation and it’s not even close. They dominate almost every game they play in. On Saturday Baylor took on Oregon in a thrilling game. Oregon led the first half and played well all game, but Baylor took over and won 78-70. Baylor is a great offensive team and an amazing defensive team as well. Baylor has the best defense in the country and it definitely showed in the Villanova game. They allow only 54 points per game, but when their defense can’t bail them out they can score when they need to. Baylor averages 80.7 points per game. They can score and they can defend at the highest levels. Baylor could be on course to repeat as champions. 

Alcorn State is a struggling team that has not played well this season. They are not good offensively or defensively. They average 60.2 points per game and allow 74.6 points per game. That is an average of 14 points per game and on top of all this shoot under 40% from the field as a team. Alcorn State played Gonzaga where they lost 84-57. This game should look alot like the Gonzaga game, but worse. 

Alcorn State stands no chance to win this game. Baylor is the best team in the country and will dominate the Braves. This is why we like Baylor to cover the 33.5 point spread.

Incarnate Wood vs. #3 Purdue 

The Bet: Incrate Wood 

#3 Purdue takes on Incarnate Wood. This is not a question of who wins this game, but by how much. 38 points is a lot to cover, but this game will not be a competition. 

Purdue is 10-1 on the year and 6-1 at home this season. They were a second and a half court buzzer beater from being 11-0. They are a great team that sometimes flies under the radar compared to bigger basketball programs. The Boilermakers are proving they are a legit top tier team and program this year with an amazing start to the season. They average 86.5 points per game on 51.6% shooting from the field as a team. They average 18 assists as a team. They are a high powered offense and have no problem scoring at will. They have never scored lower than 77 points all season. They are considered one of if not the best offensive teams in the country. They should have no problem scoring against Incarnate Wood. 

Incarnate Wood is not a good team. They are 2-9 and 0-3 on the road. They are a bad defensive team, which should not fare well against one of the best offensive teams in the country. They are going to have major problems trying to stop Purdue. This matchup is a recipe for disaster for Incarnate Wood, but they have taken on a better Baylor team before. When Incarnate Wood played Baylor in the second game of the season they lost obviously, but by 27 in a 87-60 loss. 

I expect the game to look very similar to that. If Incarnate Wood can lose by less than 38 to Baylor, they can lose by less than 38 to Purdue. That’s why we like Incarnate Wood to cover the 38 point spread. 

Northern Arizona vs. #5 Gonzaga 

The Bet: Gonzaga -35 

Our final Matchup of the night between #5 Gonzaga against Northern Arizona. Another game where this is not a question of who wins this game, but by how much. 

Gonzaga has looked good to start the season. They started off the season as number 1 and are not that far away now at number five. They had early wins over at the time #5 Texas and #2 UCLA, but dropped two big games to current #2 Duke and #6 Alabama. Every game against unranked teams they have dominated. Gonzaga is led by their two star big men in Drew Timme and Chet Holgrem. Timme and Holmgren are two of the best players in the nation and should dominate in this game all night. Gonzaga is a very well rounded team and should have no

trouble playing at home where they are 6-0, especially against Northern Arizona. Gonzaga is a top team and has far too good of a team to lose this game. 

Northern Arizona is 4-7 this season and 1-4 on the road. They barely shoot over 40% from the field and have a hard time stopping opponents from scoring. They played Arizona in the first game of the season. Arizona, who is number eight in the country right now, destroyed Northern Arizona 81-52. Gonzaga is as good if not a better team than Arizona and should expect the game to look like that but more of a blow out. 

With Northern Arizona’s struggles, I see no way Gonzaga does not win this game by 30 plus points. That’s why we like Gonzaga to cover the 35 point spread.