The Champions Classic from Madison Square Garden takes Center Stage on Tuesday's college hoops slate, as four of the top college hoops programs take the court in this annual event.
Top College Basketball Best Bets for Today
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Michigan State 
vs. Kentucky 
The Spartans are off to a 3-0 start, including a resume-building win over Arkansas in East Lansing on November 8th (69-66). The win was nice, but Michigan State still has several areas where it needs to improve. Specifically, the Spartans are making under 22 percent of shots from beyond the arc. It's easy to dismiss this issue and blame it on a small sample size, although that would be ignoring the full picture. Michigan State had a similar issue last year, making 31 percent of their three-point attempts, ranking 319th in all of Division 1. A significant portion of the team returned this season, and the current group ranks 48th in the nation in minutes continuity from last year, according to KenPom. The lack of long-range shooting isn't always a fatal problem, but when you're up against a strong and lengthy defensive team, it's hard to have success without a deep ball threat.
The Wildcats, meanwhile, have seemingly improved their biggest issue from last season, a lack of defense. Kentucky ranked 10th in offensive efficiency last season but couldn't get stops, ranking 51st in defensive efficiency. This season, the Wildcats have returned a similarly powerful offense, now ranking eighth in efficiency; however, their defensive rating now stands at 10th in the nation.
Looking at Tuesday's matchup, Michigan State's offense is the obvious weak link. Its best skill so far is snagging offensive boards, ranking fifth in the nation in offensive rebounding percentage; but, as it turns out, Kentucky has been nearly just as good on the defensive glass, ranking 10th in rebounding rate.
Considering the strengths and weaknesses of each team, I like Kentucky's odds of pulling away late in the game. I'm laying the points with the Wildcats in this one.
College Basketball Best Bet: Kentucky -5
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Kansas 
vs. Duke 
Perhaps the most important note for this game is the status of five-star freshman Darryn Peterson. The Kansas guard was ranked as the number one recruit in this year's class by 247sports, and many in the media are projecting Peterson might be selected first overall in the 2026 NBA Draft. Unfortunately for Kansas, Peterson has missed the last two games, and the latest status update isn't very encouraging.
Following Kansas' win over Princeton last Saturday, CBS Sports is reporting that head coach Bill Self admitted, "We're not obviously gonna have him, you know, at least for the immediate future," Self said. "I just don't know how long that'll be."
When he played, Peterson was living up to the hype, having established himself as the primary ball handler and the go-to scorer for the Jayhawks. But as great as he performed, Kansas still fell to North Carolina by a large margin, 87-74.
Speaking of five-star freshmen, Duke has its own lottery prospect in forward Cameron Boozer, who was the third-ranked recruit in the nation, per 247sports. Aside from Boozer, the Blue Devils returned plenty of talent and brought in other highly regarded recruits to once again make a legitimate run at a national championship. Duke trounced Texas in the season-opener, 75-60, and dropped 95-plus points in all three games following.
Much like the matchup in the first leg of the Champions Classic doubleheader, we again have a clear weak link, this time in the form of Kansas's offensive attack. The Jayhawks rank 55th in adjusted offensive efficiency, a far cry from the other team components involved in this game. KU's defense and Duke's offense and defense all rank top 11 in the nation in adjusted efficiency.
I'm tempted to take the under in this game due to the formidable defenses of each team, although both teams like to run when possible, which makes it riskier in my opinion. Namely, Duke ranks sixth in average offensive possession length, and Kansas ranks 94th in the same category, so we can't rule out the possibility of a shootout, even though both teams are playing well defensively.
I wouldn't be surprised if Kansas has a small lead at halftime, but I'm betting Duke's defense will ultimately clamp down on the Jayhawks, especially if Peterson misses the game, which seems likely at this point. For these reasons, I'm laying the points with the Blue Devils.
College Basketball Best Bet: Duke -11
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Troy 
at San Diego State
We're going back to the well with this one. I previously picked the under in San Diego State's first game of the season, the reasoning being one simple fact. The program is extraordinarily consistent at generating elite defensive teams that sometimes struggle to score. Sure enough, the Aztecs won their first game, 77-45, giving us an easy pick winner with the under. In looking at Tuesday's matchup, the logic still holds up, especially when factoring in the traits of the Aztecs' opponent.
Now in its seventh season under head coach Scott Cross, Troy has similarly turned into a defense-first program, although clearly not quite to the same extent as the home team. Regardless, the Trojans have consistently ranked much higher in defensive efficiency (compared to their offense) in each of the past four seasons, and this year follows the same pattern. Troy finished last season with a defensive rating that ranked 63rd in the nation, with its offense ranked 162nd. This year, the defense came down a bit to 133rd, but its offense is still lower at 159th. Troy has finished each of the past three seasons with a defensive rating in the top 120, so it's not unreasonable to project this year's team improving on that end of the court.
With San Diego State, there's always a chance that its offense feasts on the turnovers caused by its defense, thereby pushing up the point total. In this case, considering Troy's slightly above-average defense, I believe the point total will stay low enough for a winning bet. I'm taking the under in this spot.
College Basketball Best Bet: Under 138.5
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Tuesday College Basketball Best Bets:
Here's a recap of my best college basketball bets for Tuesday:
- Kentucky -5
- Duke -11
- Troy at San Diego State - Under 138.5
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.
