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Daily Dunk: Best College Basketball Bets Today (It's Time to Respect Washington State)

Breaking down the three best bets to place for Thursday night's college basketball action including a Pac-12 showdown between Washington State and Arizona.

By Iain MacMillan

Jan 13, 2024; Pullman, Washington, USA; Washington State Cougars forward Andrej Jakimovski (23)
Jan 13, 2024; Pullman, Washington, USA; Washington State Cougars forward Andrej Jakimovski (23) / James Snook-USA TODAY Sports
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We're entering the fun portion of the college basketball season. Teams are jockeying for position in their conference standings and trying to make a case to be considered for a spot in the upcoming NCAA Tournament.

There are a ton of games for us to watch and bet on Thursday night and I have three that I'm targeting to wager on.

If you want to tail (or fade) these plays, be sure to do so at Caesars Sportsbook. If you click the link below to sign up for an account, Caesars will cover your first bet up to $1,000!

Best College Basketball Bets Today

  • Delaware +105 vs. Charleston
  • Purdue -15.5 vs. Rutgers
  • Washington State +13 vs. Arizona

Charleston vs. Delaware prediction

We're starting things off with some midmajor action in the CAA with a showdown between Charleston and Delaware. Despite Charleston leading the conference, I think Delaware is the better team when I look at the metrics, therefore I won't hesitate in backing the Blue Hens as home underdogs tonight.

Not only does Delaware outrank Charleston by a significant margin in both effective field goal percentage and opponent effective field goal percentage, but the Blue Hens have the defense to shut down the Cougars.

48% of Charleston's shots come from beyond the arc, the 11th highest rate in the country. Now, the Cougars will have to face a Delaware team that's 41st in the country in opponent 3-point field goal percentage, keeping teams to shooting just 31.1% from three.

I think Delaware wins this game outright.

Rutgers vs. Purdue prediction

It's a big point spread to lay against a feisty Rutgers team, but I have a strong belief the Boilermakers are going to bounce back in a big way after their loss to Ohio State and blow out the Scarlet Knights tonight.

There's no denying Rutgers is a fantastic team defensively, but the Scarlet Knights are truly abysmal offensively, ranking 356th out of 362 in effective field goal percentage. It's going to be tough to keep pace with arguably the best team in the country in Purdue when you're playing on the road with an eFG% like that.

I'll back Purdue to cover this big spread in tonight's Big Ten action.

Washington State vs. Arizona prediction

Tonight's game between Arizona and Washington State is a huge showdown on the West Coast. The Wildcats currently hold a 0.5 game lead on the Cougars for the top spot in the conference, but despite Washington State being 20-6 on the year and 11-4 in the Pac-12, oddsmakers and bettors are giving them no respect, setting them as double-digit underdogs tonight.

I am here to defend Washington State. The Cougars' defense is one of the best in the country, ranking 41st in defensive efficiency. Most importantly, they're 14th in opponent 2-point field goal percentage, keeping teams to shooting just 44.9% from 2-point range. That's going to be huge tonight as they face a Wildcats team that takes 68.2% of its shots from down low, the 61st-highest rate in the country.

I won't hesitate to take the points with an undervalued Washington State team.

Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

You can check out all of Iain's bets here!

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