Top NCAA Basketball Betting Picks of the Week – November 13th Edition

With one of the top recruiting classes in the nation, and with top-ranked recruit Zion Williamson putting up some big numbers so far, Duke should be taken seriously as a contender to win the national championship. They demolished Kentucky in their opener and, while their win over Army didn’t cover the spread, it’s important to remember that college freshmen are just 18 or 19 years old — and so they will have their off days. Kansas also looked dominant in their opening win over Michigan State. Virginia held Towson State to just 42 points in their opener, showing that the Cavaliers’ stingy defense is back for another year. Auburn opened with a 22-point waxing of Pac-12 contender Washington in home non-conference action. These schools sit atop the early college basketball power rankings. What can we expect as the next week of non-conference action opens? We have three primo NCAA basketball betting picks for you.

Top NCAA Basketball Betting Picks of the Week – November 13th Edition

Here is Saturday morning’s updated @CBSSports Top 25 And 1 college basketball rankings.

1. Duke 2. Kansas 3. Tennessee 4. Gonzaga 5. Nevada …https://t.co/wzSQ2riECP — CBS Sports CBB (@CBSSportsCBB) November 10, 2018

Tuesday, November 13

Wisconsin at Xavier (6:30pm ET, FS1)

The Wisconsin Badgers rolled to an 85-63 win over Coppin State in their opener, thanks to 21 points from D’Mitrik Trice and 16 more from Brevin Pritzl. The team will be without forward Aleem Ford, who started 20 games last year as a freshman, who is undergoing knee surgery, but they will get plenty of scoring from Ethan Happ. He put up a triple-double, just the second in school history, in that win, with 10 points, 11 boards and 12 assists, a career best. Despite shooting just 41 percent, the Badgers were able to pull away from this mid-major. Xavier is off to a 2-0 start so far this season, with an 82-69 win over IUPUI in their opener and a 91-85 win over Evansville on Saturday. Defense was not a priority on Saturday, but Paul Scruggs put up a career-best 24 points, and Tyrique Jones joined him in establishing a career best with 20 boards of his own, along with 19 points. Zach Hankins had 14 points, including a stretch in the second half when he scored seven consecutive points for the Musketeers. The interior height and strength advantages for Xavier helped them hold off the Purple Aces, but they need to improve on perimeter defense. NCAA Basketball Betting Prediction: Wisconsin 87, Xavier 83

Wednesday, November 14

Michigan at Villanova (6:30pm ET, FS1)

Michigan has run out to a 2-0 record so far this year, knocking off Norfolk State, 63-44, and then Holy Cross, 56-37, on Saturday night. In the win over Holy Cross, Charles Matthews put up 20 points and Ignas Brazdeikis added 19. Brazdeikis is the top-rated freshman on the Wolverines’ squad, and he put up 15 points in the second half as the team went on a 32-8 run after intermission to turn a six-point deficit into an 18-point lead. Now the Wolverines get a stern test from one of the top teams in the nation. Villanova also has a 2-0 record, having demolished Morgan State, 100-77, and then followed that up with an 86-53 hide-tanning of Quinnipiac on Saturday night. Phil Booth put up a career best 23 points in that Saturday win, giving him 40 points in his two games so far. The Wildcats pulled down 50 rebounds to just 29 for Quinnipiac (including 20 on the offensive glass), and those 26 second chance points accounted for almost all of the Villanova margin of victory. NCAA Basketball Betting Prediction: Villanova 81, Michigan 73

Marquette at Indiana (8:30pm ET, FS1)

Marquette has a 2-0 record so far this season, having opened with a 67-42 win over Maryland-Baltimore County and then knocking off Bethune-Cookman 92-59 on Saturday, behind 37 points from Markus Howard, the best scoring night by a Golden Eagle at home in 12 seasons. He hit seven shots from downtown, helping Marquette recover from a slow start to lead by 24 at halftime. Joey Hauser also scored 11 points while pulling down seven boards and dishing out six assists. Indiana has been seen by some (including yours truly) as a potential contender in the Big Ten. They have opened with a pair of thunderous wins, routing Chicago State 104-55 and then Montana State, 80-35. Romeo Langford put up 19 to lead the Hoosiers in his Indiana debut, and then Juwan Morgan put up a double-double against Montana State, scoring 14 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. With that sort of defensive prowess, Indiana should be able to withstand Marquette at home. NCAA Basketball Betting Prediction: Indiana 77, Marquette 69