The Baylor Bears take on the St. John's Red Storm in Paradise, NV, in the Players Era Festival. Tip-off is set for approximately 4:30 p.m. ET on truTV.
St. John's is favored by -4.5 points on the spread with a moneyline of -205. The total is set at 162.5 points.
Here’s my Baylor vs. St. John's prediction and college basketball picks for November 25, 2025.
Baylor vs St. John's Prediction
My Pick: Baylor +5.5 (Play to +3)
My Baylor vs St. John's best bet is on the Bears to cover the spread. For all of your college basketball bets, be sure to find the best lines by using our live NCAAB odds page.
Baylor vs. St. John's Odds
| Baylor Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+4.5 -110 | 162.5 -110o / -110u | +170 |
| St. John's Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-4.5 -110 | 162.5 -110o / -110u | -205 |
- Baylor vs St. John's spread: St. John's -4.5
- Baylor vs St. John's over/under: 162.5 points
- Baylor vs St. John's moneyline: Baylor +170, St. John's -205
Baylor vs St. John's College Basketball Betting Preview
Baylor Basketball
Baylor snagged a win over Creighton in its opening game of the Players Era Festival to improve to 5-0 this season.
I’m really buying stock in this Baylor team. Scott Drew is at his best with a shifty point guard who controls the game but also hits shots when needed. That’s what Obi Agbim provides for Baylor.
The Bears also have tons of athleticism. Cameron Carr is a walking, talking highlight reel. He’s more than just an athlete, though, as he’s averaging 21.7 points per game, a top-10 mark in the country.
Drew has the guards to operate in ball screens and exploit less agile bigs. That’ll be a perfect game plan to score on St. John’s, as Alabama did the same thing and it worked like a charm for 40 minutes. Agbim, Carr and Tounde Yessoufou could dominate the slower-moving bigs in space.
Baylor is much smaller than St. John’s, but that applies to most teams. The Bears make up for the height disadvantage by trotting out a lineup with five capable shooters and three supreme athletes in Carr, Yessoufou and Dan Skillings Jr.
The offensive options are endless with this level of versatility. Heck, even the center Michael Rataj can put the ball on the deck and make plays. He led Baylor with five assists against Creighton.
The main reason I believe in Baylor is assistant coach Ron Sanchez. Coming with Sanchez to Waco is the pack line defense, which he learned under Tony Bennett. The difference is noticeable, as Baylor ranks 35th in defensive efficiency, its best marker in three years.
It wouldn't shock me if Baylor got even better on that end.
St. John's Basketball
St. John's took a loss in its opening game of the Players Era Festival to Iowa State.
All the loss did was grow my concerns about this talent-rich, ill-fitting roster. In two high-major games versus Alabama and Iowa State, St. John's surrendered 1.23 and 1.20 PPP, respectively.
Rick Pitino doesn't have to worry about interior scoring production with Zuby Ejiofor and Bryce Hopkins.
Ejiofor, the preseason Big East Player of the Year, matched his season average of 16 points per game against Iowa State, and Hopkins poured in 16 as well. That pair will have to dominate for the Johnnies to avoid dropping back-to-back games.
The guard situation is very shaky. In the summer, Pitino called Ian Jackson the point guard and then in the preseason, it was Oziyah Sellers. And who would've thought that now it's Dylan Darling, the only actual point guard on the roster.
Darling is a solid connector and playmaker, but he struggles with fouls and is shooting 10% from deep. He also struggled with the athleticism on Iowa State's roster. It could be more of the same in this game.
It's not a question of talent with St. John's; it's more about fit, and I don't see how the pieces work right now. In the backcourt, Joson Sanon and Jackson are both streaky, and the latter is seeing his minutes dwindle already.
Pitino needs to get his team to buy into running everything through the bigs. The Johnnies' big-man duo has the size and strength advantage over the smaller Baylor interior.
They also figure to dominate the glass, as St. John's collects offensive boards on 39% of its misses and Baylor is 212th in defensive rebound rate.
Baylor vs. St. John's Betting Analysis
Baylor is the proper play for me. St. John's still has issues to iron out, and I don't value it as KenPom and the oddsmakers do.
The Red Storm may have the talent of a top-25 squad, but they clearly have major defensive and minutes issues to iron out before handling teams like Baylor.
I expect Drew to live and die by the ball screen. He loves the high-ball screens with his speedy guards to catch slower bigs off balance and finish high off the glass.
That's a Baylor staple, and it could lead to a cover in Vegas.
My Pick: Baylor +5.5 (Play to +3)
