College Basketball Betting Guide: Odds, Predictions For Jan. 18

Today's NCAAB Betting Odds, Lines & Picks

We went 3-0 in our college basketball picks yesterday, so let's keep that streak rolling tonight. Scroll down to check out which games I like and where our BetQL model has found some value.

One trend to note is that the BetQL NCAAB model is crushing spread picks, hitting roughly 54% of all spread picks rated ⭐⭐ and higher in the last 90 days for a total return of $5,021 on $100 bets! Take advantage of BetQL's free trial and see all of today's best college basketball bets, plus what the model is projecting for this week's NFL, NBA and NHL games! Start your free trial today!

Auburn at LSU Picks & Prediction

These are two teams headed in opposite directions. Auburn has won four of its last five games while LSU has lost four of its last five. LSU played a pretty easy non-conference slate so this isn’t a huge surprise that it’s struggling against some of the top conference teams. LSU has a tough time guarding big men, allowing 14 points and 8.5 rebounds to opposing big men over its four-game losing streak. That means Auburn’s Johni Broom should have a big game tonight. He should also be helpful in guarding LSU’s KJ Williams who is tasked with doing it all for the Tigers. Williams is leading the team in scoring, rebounding, steals and blocks. That said, Auburn is known for its defense and rebounding, which should slow Williams down. If they’re able to do that, I’m not sure LSU has enough firepower on either end of the floor to keep this game close.

My pick: Auburn -4.5

Xavier at DePaul Picks & Prediction

Xavier leads the Big East with a 7-0 record - their best start ever - and it doesn’t look as if they’ll be slowing down anytime soon because their next two games are against DePaul and Georgetown, the two worst teams in the conference. As long as the Musketeers don’t overlook the Blue Demons tonight, they should be able to win this one fairly easily. Not overlooking teams is something that Xavier head coach Sean Miller praised his team for after their most recent win over Marquette.

That said, DePaul is very capable of having big nights from beyond the arc. The Demons are also great at forcing turnovers and converting them into easy transition baskets. Sloppy mistakes from Xavier could keep this game close, but I don’t think we’ll see that from Miller's squad. They lead the nation in assists per game, so their ball movement is great which helps cut down on turnovers. In fact, they only had three total turnovers in the second half against Marquette. If the Musketeers play their style of basketball in Chicago tonight, this should be an easy win and cover. 

My pick: Xavier -8.5

Arkansas at Missouri Picks & Prediction 

Missouri comes into tonight’s game off of two straight losses while Arkansas has lost its last three, marking Eric Musselman’s longest losing streak as college a head coach. These two teams meet tonight on the Tigers home floor after the Razorbacks beat Missouri by six in Fayetteville just a few weeks ago. The Tigers are a significantly better offensive team at home and will try and run Arkansas off the floor if they don’t come ready to play on the defensive end. That was the case in the Razorbacks last game in which they 97 points to Vanderbilt. However, I don’t think that will be the case tonight.

Since losing two of its best players in Nick Smith Jr. and Trevon Brazil a few weeks ago, Musselman’s squad has struggled on both ends of the floor. However, they were able to get their offense back on track against the Commodores, shooting 49% from the field and 39% from deep. Now tonight, they’ll need to rely heavily on their defense which has ranked in the top 25 for much of the season if they want to avoid dropping to 1-5 in SEC play. The Razorbacks have failed to cover in each of their last five games, so this might feel a little scary, but I think they're due for an ATS win tonight. 

My pick: Arkansas +2

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Take advantage of BetQL's free trial and see all of today's best college basketball bets, plus what the model is projecting for every NFL, NBA, NHL and college football game this week! Start your free trial today!