The Washington Huskies take on the Minnesota Golden Gophers in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Tip-off is set for 12 p.m. ET on Big Ten Network.
Minnesota is favored by 4.5 points on the spread with a moneyline of -205. The total is set at 135 points.
Here’s my Washington vs. Minnesota predictions and college basketball picks for February 1, 2025.
Washington vs Minnesota Prediction
My Pick: Minnesota -4.5 or Better
My Washington vs Minnesota best bet is on the Golden Gophers spread, with the best odds currently available at Caesars. For all of your college basketball bets, be sure to find the best lines by using our live NCAAB odds page.
Washington vs Minnesota Odds
| Washington Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+4.5 -110 | 135 -110 / -110 | +170 |
| Minnesota Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-4.5 -110 | 135 -110 / -110 | -205 |
- Washington vs Minnesota spread: Minnesota -4.5
- Washington vs Minnesota over/under: 135 points
- Washington vs Minnesota moneyline: Minnesota -205, Washington +170
- Washington vs Minnesota best bet: Minnesota -4.5 or Better
Spread
I'm laying the points with Minnesota at The Barn.
Moneyline
I'm passing on the moneyline.
Over/Under
I'm passing on the over/under.
My Pick: Minnesota -4.5 or Better
Washington vs Minnesota College Basketball Betting Preview
The Golden Gophers have been playing great basketball lately, recently putting together a three-game win streak over Michigan, Iowa and Oregon. Dawson Garcia is shining as a lead scorer, scoring over 20 points in six straight games.
Meanwhile, Washington is in free fall, losers of seven straight entering Saturday.
The Huskies built a flawed roster. While Great Osobor is a monstrous interior presence that Danny Sprinkle can build a team around (as he did last year), he failed to provide the necessary floor spacing and shooting to sustain an interior-based hub offense.
The Huskies rank among the Big Ten’s bottom three teams in ShotQuality’s Spacing, Shot Selection and Shot Making metrics.
Unsurprisingly, they’ve shot 28% from deep in league play and rank last in the league in KenPom’s offensive efficiency.
Even worse, the defense has fallen apart following Franck Kepnang's injury. The Huskies run a drop-coverage defense with Osobor, which helps them effectively deny 3-point opportunities.
But after funneling on-ball creation toward the rim, the interior defense hasn’t held up without its primary rim protector (57% 2-point shooting allowed in conference play, third-to-last in the Big Ten, per KenPom).
From a schematic perspective, the Gophers will mainly play in isolation behind Garcia, as the entire offense is built around his shooting and slashing ability.
I’m weary about Washington’s ability to stop that.
The Huskies grade out well in isolation defense (.72 PPP allowed, 71st percentile, per Synergy) but have been incapable of staying in front of the dribble (.81 pick-and-roll ball-handler PPP allowed, 32nd percentile, per Synergy).
I don’t think the Huskies have a versatile enough defender to keep Garcia from scoring at will, especially when they park in deep-drop coverage — that scheme can be vulnerable against bigger slashing wings.
On the other end of the court, Washington runs its offense through Osobor as a hub, who either scores as a poster/roller or dishes it to off-ball cutters or isolation scorers.
While Minnesota is a good cut-denial defense, the Gophers are horrific in post-up (.92 PPP allowed, 25th percentile, per Synergy) and roll-man (1.25 PPP allowed, sixth percentile, per Synergy) situations.
I suspect Washington can run its interior-based offense, as I’m not confident Garcia or frontcourt mate Parker Fox can match up effectively with Osobor.
Situationally, it’s always tough to play at The Barn, and I’m skeptical of Washington’s eastward travel ability after its Michigan road trip debacle, which included a 34-point loss to Sparty and a 16-point loss to the Wolverines.
Also, I think Minnesota is in a decent bounce-back spot returning to The Barn after a tough 22-point road loss at Michigan State.
Meanwhile, I can’t imagine catching a falling knife with Washington. Bouncing back following a few rough losses is one thing, but attempting to bounce back on the road after seven straight is another.
Minnesota has covered four of its past five games and ranks in the top 50 nationally in Haslametrics Momentum rankings.
I’m willing to buy the up-and-coming Gophers as 4.5-point favorites, given I make the line right around five.
