Three ranked college basketball teams hit the road on Thursday (Illinois, Memphis, Oregon), and there's plenty of betting value in the sport.
In fact, our staff has three best bets for Thursday's slate.
So, here's college basketball best bets and odds, including three top NCAAB picks and predictions for Thursday, January 30.
(We also have a parlay option below, if you so choose to approach these plays that way.)
College Basketball Best Bets
The team logos in the table below represent each of the matchups that our college basketball betting staff is targeting from today's slate of games. Click on the team logos for any of the matchups below to navigate to a specific bet discussed in this article.
| Game | Time (ET) | Pick |
|---|---|---|
  | 6 p.m. | |
  | 8:30 p.m. | |
  | 10:30 p.m. | |
Specific betting recommendations come from the sportsbook offering preferred odds as of writing. Always shop for the best price using our NCAAB Odds page, which automatically surfaces the best lines for every game. | ||
New Hampshire vs. Maine
From a projections perspective, this total is a few points too high.
EvanMiya, Bart Torvik, KenPom, Haslemetrics and our Action PRO Model all project the over/under between 134 and 136. Therefore, I’m willing to buy this down to 137.
From a schematic and situational perspective, I expect an all-out rock fight.
New Hampshire is among the nation’s worst offenses, partially because the Wildcats don’t run any offense. They’re over-reliant on isolation hero ball from guards Sami Pissis and Anthony McComb III.
It’ll be tough for them to score consistently against Maine’s aggressive, swarming backcourt defenders.
Kellen Tynes and Jaden Clayton are two of the best low-major dribble defenders, and their quick hands should cause issues for a New Hampshire team that ranks third-to-last in the league in offensive turnover rate.
Maine head coach Chris Markwood has been spectacular this year in his game-planning and in-game scheming.
Specifically, he’s been excellent about how and when he switches from his base man-to-man coverage into his uber-effective, aggressive 2-3 zone defense (.79 PPP allowed, 87th percentile, per Synergy).
New Hampshire is a horrific zone offense, as the Wildcats aren’t built to beat zone. When Maine goes zone, New Hampshire won’t score.
On the other end of the court, I’ve been surprisingly impressed by New Hampshire’s ball-screen coverage. That'll be crucial in stopping Maine’s ball-screen motion offense led by Tynes (five assists per game at a 28% rate).
Of greater importance, I’m still banking on negative shooting regression from Maine.
The Black Bears can’t keep shooting nearly 43% from deep forever. Based on the “quality” of their attempts, ShotQuality projects they should be shooting closer to 34% from 3.
New Hampshire is a half-decent 3-point denial defense that can force that regression. Once Maine stops hitting so many 3s, opposing defenders will start to sag down and clog those all-important ball-screen driving lanes, and Maine’s offense could stutter.
Finally, I think the market is still over-projecting New Hampshire’s pace.
The Wildcats played super up-tempo ball last season, and coach Nathan Davis told me in the offseason that he hoped to play even faster this year.
But that hasn’t been the case, as they’ve worked longer into the shot clock than ever this year while seldomly getting out in transition.
Meanwhile, Maine is a relatively slow-paced team, mainly because the Bears’ swarming defense forces opponents to work deep into the clock (18-second average defensive possession length, 292nd nationally, per KenPom).
Between Maine’s looming shooting regression, New Hampshire’s dreadful zone offense and the projected down-tempo pace, I’m expecting a rock fight in Orono on Thursday.
Pick: Under 138.5 (Play to 137)
Illinois vs. Nebraska
Nebraska is struggling right now, especially on the offensive end.
The Cornhuskers rank near the bottom of the Big Ten in offensive efficiency, per Evan Miya. They seriously miss Keisei Tominaga, as they can’t hit 3s anymore.
Plus, they’re not grabbing offensive rebounds, which means fewer second chances and fewer 3s. Their turnover margins are about even, so there's no shot-volume boost.
Overall, it's hard to see where their better scoring options will come from.
On the other side, Illinois isn't exactly on a winning streak right now. The Illini have had some tough breaks, like when Kasparas Jakucionis fouled out early against Michigan State, and injury issues.
But let’s not forget that Illinois has crushed on the road this month. The Illini beat Indiana at Assembly Hall by 25 and Oregon in Eugene by 32.
Yes, Tomislav Ivisic will miss this game, but Illinois should still piece together a good performance on Thursday.
I started thinking Nebraska had a chance to be competitive a month ago. Fred Hoiberg is a veteran coach, and he has a seasoned roster. They snuck into the top 30 nationally in KenPom’s ratings.
But things still haven’t clicked. Hoiberg hasn’t picked up an NCAA Tournament win since 2013, and those glory days are slipping further away.
Last season, everyone thought Nebraska would be competitive in the tournament, but the Huskers were bounced in the first round. They’re now 2-7 in Big Ten play, and things look bleaker by the day.
Thursday is a good bounce-back spot for the Illini against a down-and-out Nebraska squad. They’ve already proven they can perform on the road, so I think they’ll close January with a strong showing against the Huskers.
I’d lay up to seven points with the Illini.
Pick: Illinois -3.5 (Play to -7)
Oregon vs. UCLA
By Sean Paul
I think we're getting a real glimpse of Oregon, which lost two of its past three games. The Ducks lost a home game to Purdue and a road game to Minnesota, but honestly, it was just a matter of time. Oregon can't fight back from double-digit deficits with less than 10 minutes remaining forever.
It all starts with playing better early.
Oregon isn't great on either end of the floor, but it does just enough on both ends to win games. The Ducks' defense ranks 41st in efficiency, and the offense ranks 32nd in efficiency.
They'll need to ensure they handle the ball comfortably. Oregon turns the ball over at a 16% clip, but many teams have fallen victim to UCLA's dominant defense.
Moreover, the Ducks' offense doesn't have a clear go-to scorer.
I think Jackson Shelstad is the most trustworthy, but he's proven to be a very streaky player. Shelstad, forward Nate Bittle and guard TJ Bamba are the lone Ducks who average 10+ points per game.
Streaky scoring is a theme for the Ducks' guards. Bamba is shooting below 40% from the field, Keeshawn Barthelemy is around 42% and Shelstad is at 44% after sitting below 40% through January.
A lot of what happens in this matchup depends on which version of Oregon's backcourt shows up.
Meanwhile, the UCLA Bruins have won four consecutive games, including a pair of road games over Washington and rival USC. Some shaky performances — and Mick Cronin eviscerating his team to the media — was the perfect diet to get the team on track.
Sometimes an injury can lead to a silver lining. Bruins leading-scorer Tyler Bilodeau left the Washington game after just three minutes and didn't play versus USC. That opened up minutes for 7-foot-3 center Aday Mara, who scored 12+ points in three consecutive games and blocked five shots in two of the three.
Before Mara emerged as a legitimate option, UCLA lacked rim protection. But now Mara adds another dimension to UCLA's dominant defense.
Cronin got away from his defensive coaching DNA the past few years, but he's back to his bread and butter. The Bruins rank 20th in KenPom's defensive efficiency while their pressure leads to a 24% turnover rate.
Teams can score on UCLA in a half-court setting if the Bruins can't force a turnover, as opponents shoot 51% from 2 and 33% from 3.
Teams look to attack UCLA's defense with shooting, attempting 3s on 44% of their field goal attempts. With the Ducks shooting 34% from 3, I don't see that being a real advantage.
Additionally, UCLA's offense is outstanding in two areas: playing in transition and posting up. We'll see if the post-up play matters here, as Bilodeau accounts for the lion's share of UCLA's 91st-percentile post-up scoring. Eric Dailey Jr. and Mara can also thrive in post-up situations.
Even if Bilodeau doesn't play, the Bruins have forwards with size who can score on the interior.
Cronin has made a concerted effort to involve Dailey in the offense more. The 6-foot-8 multi-faceted forward has scored 16+ points in three of his past five games. He's an interesting matchup here because I don't know if Oregon forward Brandon Angel can slow him down.
Ultimately, I like the Bruins' defense standing out in this game. The Ducks are three spots above the Bruins in KenPom, and with the way both teams are trending, I can't get behind that.
Since 2025 began, Oregon is ranked No. 69 in Bart Torvik, just one spot above Omaha and one spot above Northwestern.
Conversely, UCLA ranks 31st in Bart Torvik, which largely aligns with its ranking for the year.
Pick: UCLA -3.5 (Play to -4.5)
