NCAA Basketball Predictions, Odds & Best Bets (2/23)

Sunday’s College Hoops slate is smaller per usual, but that didn’t stop us from finding some of our best bets on the board!

For all of our Expert NCAA Basketball Picks, check out our page here.

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 23rd, 2025

Merrimack vs Iona Predictions

Best Bets: Merrimack ML (-101) BetOnline

Back the Warriors to get a win tonight. They’ve been floundering, losing three straight and essentially dropping out of the MAAC regular season title contention. However, this team is still very good, especially defensively, and they won’t have much trouble stopping their hosts today.

Iona is coming off a win after losing two prior to that matchup. These teams have not played before but both defenses are better than their offenses, and they play polarizing styles of basketball. Iona loves to get out and run, but they don’t necessarily have the offense for it. The Gaels are Top 75 in terms of possessions per game, but offensively they are north of 300 in adjusted efficiency, TO Rate, FT Rate and eFG%, where they are bottom 8 in the country. Not to mention ranking 330th in FT Rate defense and 273rd in offensive rebounds allowed.

The only thing the Gaels do well is crash the offensive glass, but it won’t be enough to overcome Merrimack.

The Warriors win the turnover battle, ranking Top 20 in TO Rate on both sides of the ball, slipping into the Top 10 defensively. Even if Iona speeds things up, giving Budd Clark extra possessions to make something happen is never a good idea, and I trust the Warriors to bounce back in this spot on the road.

Arizona State vs Kansas State Predictions

Best Bets: Kansas State -6.5 (-110) BetOnline

Back the Kitty Cats of K-State tonight at home against a Sun Devils team whom they already beat in Tempe.

The Wildcats were 3.5 point underdogs going to that game, eventually winning by 1 on last second free throws. The interesting part of that game, to me, was the fact that Arizona State started off on a 15-0 run. I’m not kidding.

It took Kansas State nearly 7 minutes to put the ball in the hoop, and they even found themselves down 18-2 with 11 minutes until halftime. The Wildcats would go on to lead 35-32 at halftime, closing out the half on a 33-14 run. I highlight that stretch, simply because I believe it shows that Kansas State is lightyears better than the Sun Devils, and tonight at home I see them covering.

The Wildcats were 3.5 point dogs on the road, and now are laying 6.5 at home. By my count, that’s a 10 point swing just for being in Bramlage Coliseum. They are back at home after losing two straight on the road in Utah. The Cats have won four straight at home, beating Arizona and Kansas in back to back games, plus they rank 34th defensively, 38th in TO Rate D and 14th in FT Rate defense as well.

There’s really nothing special about the Sun Devils. They turn the ball over and don’t crash the glass while shooting way too many threes at a 30.3% clip (293rd in the nation). Despite them having a spot at revenge, I do not think Arizona State will be able to compete with the Cats a second time. Arizona State is just 2-6 on the road this season, but are 4-4 ATS. However I don’t see that coming into play. Give me K-State in a dominant win.

Still Didn’t Get Your NCAA Basketball Fix?

Here at Betting News, we offer Free Expert Picks for every major sports league. We also host daily streams on our Twitch Channel with our best bets, as well as sweat out games on Playback! Be sure to tune into everything we have going on at our Youtube, TikTok, and X pages as well.

For more College Hoops action, check out these pages below.

• NCAA Basketball Expert Picks
• College Hoops Betting Guide
• College Basketball Championship Odds
• March Madness Bracket Projections

Check Out All of Our Resources at Betting News