Saturday's college hoops slate is a bit slimmer than usual, as it seems many of the more prolific teams are biding their time until next week's festivities begin. Nonetheless, we've still got a few intriguing matchups on the board.
Top College Basketball Best Bets for Today
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UC Santa Barbara at Nevada 
The most significant weak link in this matchup is by far UC Santa Barbara's defense, which ranks 233rd in adjusted efficiency. Nevada ranks in the Top 140 in the nation on both offense and defense, while UCSB ranks 79th offensively.
It's hard to win any game with a porous defense, and Saturday's challenge is even more difficult because Nevada does multiple things very well on offense. The Wolf Pack ranks in the Top 70 of the nation in turnover percentage, offensive rebounding percentage, and free-throw attempt rate. UCSB's defense ranks below the D-1 average in the latter two categories, and it's 124th in turnovers.
UCSB may shoot its way to victory, but I'm betting its leaky defense will allow Nevada to get back in the win column at home. I'm backing the Wolf Pack in this one.
College Basketball Best Bet: Nevada -6.5
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San Francisco 
vs. Minnesota 
Both teams dropped their only challenging game of the season so far, so they still have a lot to prove. San Francisco has the edge in overall efficiency, but Minnesota does a few things exceptionally well that shouldn't be overlooked.
The Gophers' defensive efficiency rating could be better, but they're outstanding at snagging boards and holding down the paint. The Gophers have the 14th-highest defensive rebounding percentage in the nation while holding opponents to under 44 percent on two-point attempts, the 35th-best mark in D-1.
At the other end of the court, the Gophers are 26th in offensive rebounding percentage and 16th in free-throw attempt rate. In contrast, USF is 189th in defensive rebounding and 160th in free-throw attempt rate allowed.
San Francisco is another team that tends to live and die by the three-point shot, so anything is possible, but I believe Minnesota's rebounding will be key to a victory. I'm going with the Gophers in this spot.
College Basketball Best Bet: Minnesota +2.5
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Northern Iowa 
at UC Irvine 
It's hard to trust the Anteaters.
They've played only three D-1 opponents and have lost to two of them, both outside the Top 100 in KP's overall rankings. And both losses were by margins of seven-plus points.
UC Irvine is decent on defense, but its offense is severely underwhelming, ranking 249th in adjusted efficiency.
On the other hand, we have several reasons to trust the Panthers. Last season, they won 14 of 20 conference games, and now they returned 62 percent of their minutes, ranking fourth in the nation for continuity. And unlike their opponent on Saturday, the Panthers are above average offensively, ranking 135th in adj. efficiency. They are also solid defensively, ranking 62nd.
It's possible UC Irvine might bounce back at home and start hitting some shots. Still, I'm not counting on it, given Northern Iowa's immense experience and continuity, not to mention its decent defense. I'm taking the Panthers.
College Basketball Best Bet: Northern Iowa -1.5
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Saturday College Basketball Best Bets:
Here's a recap of my best college basketball bets for Saturday:
- Nevada -6.5
- Minnesota +2.5
- Northern Iowa -1.5
For up-to-date information on the latest college basketball betting odds and props from multiple sources, check out the college basketball odds page on RotoWire.
