College Basketball Picks

Mike Krzyzewski loves his alma mater, but that doesn’t mean he takes it easy on Army when he’s on the opposition’s bench. In six meetings between Army and Duke with Krzyzewski coaching the Blue Devils, Duke’s margin of victory has averaged 44 points, and 2014’s game marked the first time Army had even come within 20 points of Duke. There’s nothing that suggests this time will be any different. Duke looked otherworldly against Kentucky, and while Army managed a win against Marist in its opener, beating the Red Foxes simply isn’t the same as blasting the Wildcats. This game is really about betting your sportsbook that Army will lose but more or less than 31. Dan Jamison gives his basketball prediction and pick!

Villanova lost several key players from last year’s national champions, but the Wildcats are still a very talented and experienced team. Villanova’s inside-outside attack starts with senior forward Eric Paschall, who showed exactly why he’s on the watch list for the Naismith Player of the Year honors in the opener against Morgan State with 27 points. At 6-foot-8, the forward isn’t the tallest for an interior player, but his 255-pound frame more than makes up for it and allows him to push opponents around inside. Will he be the force Villanova needs to cover the sportsbook’s line of -24? DJ has your college basketball pick!

Auburn’s attack ran through two players against South Alabama: guard Jared Harper and forward Chuma Okeke. Both players scored 20 points in the season opener, and both shot 60 percent from beyond the 3-point arc in the victory. Those kinds of numbers would be devastating against Washington given the kind of game the Huskies like to play. But Washington isn’t South Bama so what can we expect from the Auburn guards is game 2? DJ has your college basketball pick.

Coach K punted on defense last season in favor of playing the fabled 2-3 zone, and he might be forced to do so again this season with their three best players essentially playing the same position. Coach Cal has reloaded his roster with talented freshmen who will probably take their lumps on defense, and as long as Duke’s athletes have space to operate, we might be in for more alley-oops in this game than all of Duke’s 1994 season games combined. Can Duke alley-oop its way to a cover as a +2 underdog at the majority of betting sites? Kyle cash has your basketball pick.

Tom Izzo recruiting trail ended up mostly empty this year, and as a result, he was left stranded after Miles Bridges and Jaren Jackson Jr. both left for greener pastures to the NBA. Just a year removed from offering up college basketball’s best frontcourt, Izzo is left with the ever-frustrating Nick Ward and former walk-on Kenny Goins. Yikes. PG Cassius Winston was able to take steps forward last year as a lead ball handler that should propel him to another level this season, but Michigan State is rife with guys such as Winston. Will MSU give any resistance to #1 Kansas?