NCAA Basketball Predictions, Odds & Best Bets

Sunday College Hoops! It’s always a smaller slate to end our week, but regardless, we got down and dirty in the slate and found some of our best bets for today’s NCAA Basketball!

For all of our Expert NCAA Basketball Picks, check out our page here. But for now, let’s get right into it!

Listed below are my College Hoops best bets for today, but be sure to get all of my picks on my Twitter (@Shaggy_Bets)

NCAA Basketball Best Bets – February 16th, 2025

Merrimack vs Marist Predictions

Best Bets: Merrimack/Marist Under 125.5 BetOnline

Once again, we are betting on a Merrimack under. Their offense is incredibly slow, but their defense is so much better. They win games by slowing things down, being very efficient on their offensive possessions while suffocating their opponents on defense. Coming off a Friday Night loss, it was clear the Warriors were looking forward to this top of the MAAC showdown, and will come very prepared.

As for the Red Foxes, they are no slouch. They also rank north of 310 in possessions per game, loving to play slow. They boast a Top 20 eFG% defense on the road this year, even though their offense is north of 270 in overall efficiency. Neither team gets to the free throw line, as both rank Bottom 6 in FT Rate offense. Neither team allows very many offensive rebounds or crashes the glass, so second chance points should be as rare as trips to the free throw line.

Ultimately in this MAAC showdown between two top teams, I see defense running this very slow paced game, causing it to stay well under 125.5.

Nebraska vs Northwestern Predictions

Best Bets: Nebraska/Northwestern Under 142 (-110) BetOnline

What’s a Sunday without some Big Ten Basketball unders? The Wildcats host the Huskers today and we’ve got it being a low scoring affair.

Nebraska ranks 185th in possessions per game on the road, slowing down slightly. Plus, their eFG% drops over 30 spots, bringing them down to 138th in the country. Defensively, they are Top 65 in efficiency while limiting offensive rebounds and FT attempts. The Huskers are Top 50 in both FT Rate defense and offensive rebounds allowed, while ranking 341st in offensive rebounds of their own. Nebraska is a team that plays to their opponents’ pace and can’t really shoot outside of Lincoln.

Northwestern ranks 310th in pace dropping to 324th on their home court. The Wildcats take incredibly good care of the basketball, ranking 13th in TO Rate, meaning they find a good shot nearly every time down the court after taking up most of the shot clock. Defensively, Northwestern does struggle to guard the perimeter, but with the Huskers overall shooting numbers dropping drastically on the road, I don’t see that being an issue.

Valparaiso vs Evansville Predictions

Best Bets: Valpo/Evansville Under 145 (-110) BetOnline

Here we go, one more under for your Sunday!

These teams already played once, squeaking over a total of 141 as the game ended 78-68. Now we see the total adjusted a little bit in this second matchup, but I still think it goes under.

Valparaiso is north of 200 in pace, north of 285 in eFG% and they don’t shoot any threes. The Beacons are 200th in 3P Rate in the nation and 299th in 3P%, shooting just 30% from deep as a team. Defensively, they are sound. That’s it. About middle of the pack in nearly every category. Valpo has lost nine straight games before finally beating Belmont on Wednesday.

As for the Purple Aces, they host the Beacons whom they already beat by 10 once. Evansville has lost three straight going into this contest and they haven’t really shown up since that game. The hosts are 232nd in pace at home, while also bringing an offense that is bottom 30 in efficiency, bottom 25 in offensive rebounds, and 288th in eFG%.

Both teams will certainly rely on their defense to keep them in this matchup, so give me the game to stay under.

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