The Cincinnati Bearcats take on the West Virginia Mountaineers in Morgantown, WV. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2.
West Virginia is favored by 1.5 points on the spread with a moneyline of -125. The total is set at 131.5 points.
Here’s my Cincinnati vs. West Virginia prediction and college basketball picks for January 6, 2026.
Cincinnati vs. West Virginia Odds, Spread, Pick
| Cincinnati Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+1.5 -110 | 131.5 -110 / -110 | +105 |
| West Virginia Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-1.5 -110 | 131.5 -110 / -110 | -125 |
My Pick: Under 129.5 (Play to 127.5)
My Cincinnati vs West Virginia best bet is on the under. For all of your college basketball bets, be sure to find the best lines by using our live NCAAB odds page.
Cincinnati vs West Virginia NCAAB Betting Preview
Cincinnati Basketball
Cincinnati played very well on Saturday in a close loss to eighth-ranked Houston. The Bearcats led the game at half, and it was tied at 60 with four minutes to go before the offense stalled out against an elite Houston defense.
Missed free throws and sloppy turnovers from Jizzle James thwarted the upset bid late.
However, Cincinnati should be encouraged by how this group played against top-level competition. The Bearcats were able to get to the rim and had 28 points in the paint offensively. The defense hung in there and forced Houston into bad outside shots.
Cincinnati was even up double-digits in the second half.
A game like this can cause a team to completely collapse and fold up the tent, or it can cause you to grow, regroup and come back stronger.
I'll be watching to see how the Bearcats respond on Tuesday.
West Virginia Basketball
West Virginia comes in off an embarrassing 21-point loss at Iowa State last Friday. Milan Momcilovic sniped eight 3-pointers for the Cyclones, who shot 52% from 3-point range as a team.
Joshua Jefferson had a triple-double for Iowa State, which busted the game open with a late first-half 20-7 run.
West Virginia couldn’t get into much of an offensive rhythm, as Honor Huff and Jasper Floyd were a combined 2-of-13 from deep. The Mountaineers had no offensive continuity, scoring only 42 points total in the last 30 minutes of the game.
Forcing low-percentage shots and guarding the 3-point line has to be a priority against Cincinnati or it might result in an 0-2 start in league play for West Virginia.
Cincinnati vs. West Virginia Betting Analysis
This line opened West Virginia -2.5 with a total anywhere from 128.5 to 130. I'm going to dive in on the under.
These two teams played last season with meetings that ended 63-50 and 62-59, both West Virginia wins. The games played to 62 and 60 possessions, respectively, and I could see a similar possession count in this one.
This is a matchup between two top-15 defenses, according to KenPom, and each defense is going to make the opposing offense work tirelessly to generate quality shots.
West Virginia ranks ninth nationally in shot selection allowed, routinely requiring its opponents to settle for contested low-percentage jumpers.
While Cincinnati wants to shoot the ball from deep, the Bearcats don’t have reliable options outside of Day Day Thomas, who's hitting 46% from outside. He can bury shots from anywhere on the floor, but he struggled to get good looks against Houston and could struggle against West Virginia.
Baba Miller is a force for Cincinnati on the offensive glass, but West Virginia is an excellent defensive rebounding team while ranking 34th nationally in preventing offensive rebounds.
The Mountaineers defend well without fouling, so the driving prowess of James will be tested. Don’t expect him to get calls in the lane against this defensive bunch.
Cincinnati started this season playing at a blistering pace, as 10 of its first 11 games surpassed 70 possessions. But as the Bearcats have elevated the level of their opponent, the pace has slowed significantly.
West Virginia can pull you into the deep end defensively and put the kibosh on an up-and-down affair, as the Mountaineers rank 359th nationally in adjusted operating tempo. This is going to be a game played with a possession count in the low 60s.
Ultimately, I trust these two defenses to show up and make it very difficult for either offense to get into a real rhythm. Every shot is going to be contested — every ball screen, every pick-and-roll, every jumper. Expect nothing easy here, just like the two meetings we saw last season.
This is a low total, but I expect this game to stay under.
My Pick: Under 129.5 (Play to 127.5)
