Thursday's slate is a short one, but it's also sweet. We've got two prominent basketball programs facing off in Tuscaloosa, as well as the hardwood version of the Backyard Brawl. To round out our betting action, we also have an ACC-Big 12 battle going down in the Little Apple.
Top College Basketball Best Bets for Today
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Pittsburgh 
at West Virginia 
West Virginia underwent significant changes in the offseason, but the results so far are encouraging. Specifically, the Mountaineers hired Ross Hodge as their new head coach, formerly of North Texas, and the team already resembles his past teams. The Mean Green went 27-9 (14-4) last year, primarily on the strength of its defense, which finished 45th in adjusted efficiency. North Texas finished 52nd in defense in the previous year, and now West Virginia ranks 53rd, further illustrating coach Hodge's ability to coach up a team's defense to an impressive degree.
Pittsburgh, meanwhile, enters its eighth season under head coach Jeff Capel III. The Panthers have just one NCAA tournament appearance and two seasons with a winning conference record in that span. KenPom is projecting this year's team to finish with an 8-10 conference record -- more of the same results, essentially.
Early in the season, I prefer teams with greater continuity from the past season, but in this case, I'd rather take our chances with the home team and its new head coach. I'm going with the Mountaineers in this one.
College Basketball Best Bet: West Virginia -5.5
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Purdue 
at Alabama
The Boilermakers are poised to make a run in March, but they're not without flaws. Namely, Purdue has struggled to pull down defensive boards in its first two games, and it hasn't exactly played the toughest competition. The Boilermakers rank 285th in defensive rebounding rate, a deficiency that the Crimson Tide will assuredly exploit if it holds up, as Alabama ranks 138th in offensive rebounding rate.
Additionally, while Purdue will assuredly win many games this year thanks to an explosive offense, it isn't nearly as sharp defensively, ranking 44th in adjusted efficiency. Alabama's offense ranks 15th in efficiency, so the Crimson Tide is liable to put up a lot of points, especially if the Boilermakers can't eliminate second-chance opportunities.
Alabama already earned a critical resume-building win, knocking off St. John's at Madison Square Garden, 103-96, demonstrating its high ceiling. Considering the location of Wednesday's game and how both teams have looked through two games, my money's on the Crimson Tide.
College Basketball Best Bet: Alabama -3.5
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California 
at Kansas State 
The Golden Bears have undergone a slow rebuild process since their last trip to the NCAA tournament in 2016, but on paper, this is their best team since 2017. Now, in its third year under head coach Mark Madsen, California began the season ranked 87th on KenPom's overall efficiency chart and has already risen to 83rd with its performances to start the year. The Golden Bears have a long way to go, but this would already be their highest ranking in nine years.
The Wildcats, on the other hand, have remained stagnant since their trip to the Elite Eight in head coach Jerome Tang's first year in 2022-23. Kansas State hasn't finished better than 65th in the efficiency rankings in the past two years, and it posted a losing conference record in each season. This year's team entered the season ranked at 61st, so it's hard to expect substantial improvement.
Kansas State was in a nearly identical circumstance almost a year ago, on November 14, 2024, when it hosted LSU. The Tigers came to Manhattan and won 76-65 despite being 88th in overall efficiency and Kansas State being 51st at the time.
California might fade over the course of the season, but right now, it appears much improved over the previous iterations we've seen in recent years. I'm taking the points in this spot.
College Basketball Best Bet: California +6.5
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Thursday College Basketball Best Bets:
Here's a recap of my best college basketball bets for Thursday:
- West Virginia -5.5
- Alabama -3.5
- California +6.5
For up-to-date information on the latest college basketball betting odds and props from multiple sportsbooks, check out the college basketball odds page on RotoWire.
