Friday College Basketball Betting: How to Bet Washington vs. Baylor

Friday College Basketball Betting: How to Bet Washington vs. Baylor article feature image
Credit:

Ray Carlin-USA TODAY Sports. Pictured: Jared Butler

  • Mike Randle has broken down two games on tonight's college basketball slate offering value.
  • Find out how he's betting Davidson vs. Auburn and Washington vs. Baylor below.

After enjoying two covers by Ohio State and Virginia on Wednesday night, we turn our Friday night attention to neutral site games involving two ranked teams.

Let's head to Annapolis to analyze Davidson vs. No. 24 Auburn, followed by a journey to Anchorage to break down Washington vs. No. 16 Baylor.

  • No. 24 Auburn (-3) vs. Davidson — 6:00 p.m. ET
  • No. 16 Baylor (-5) vs. Washington — 9:30 p.m. ET

Friday College Basketball Betting


Odds as of Friday morning and via PointsBet, where Action Network users can access an exclusive promotion to get a 200% deposit match (deposit $50, bet with $150).


Auburn vs. Davidson Odds

  • Spread: Auburn -3
  • Over/Under: 145
  • Time: 6:00 p.m. ET
  • TV: CBSSN

The marquee game of the Veterans Classic features No. 24 Auburn vs. Davidson.

Auburn comes off an 83-74 home win over Georgia Southern, a game it won but failed to cover. Despite reaching the Final Four, the Tigers have been prone to early-season struggles away from Auburn Arena.

Last year, the Tigers had an early-season stretch where they lost five of six away games, including at N.C. State and at South Carolina. The Tigers rely on their pressure defense and three-point shooting, both of which can struggle for long periods of time in road battles.

Auburn lost three key starters from last year's Final Four team, accounting for over 42 points per game.

Auburn was an incredible 3P shooting team last season, averaging 38% as a team overall, including 39.4% in SEC play. But this year's team lacks that level of marksmanship and only shot 31% (7 for 22) from beyond the arc in their opening game.

Meanwhile, Davidson returns all five starters from a 24-10 team, and provides head coach Bob McKillop with maybe his best all-around team in his 30 years as the Wildcats' coach.

The Wildcast features an incredible backcourt duo of senior Jon Axel Gudmundsson (16.9 ppg, 7.3 rpg) and junior Kellan Grady (17.3 ppg, 4.5 rpg).

Gudmundsson is the A-10's reigning Player of the Year and honorable mention All-American. He is a tremendous all-around player who plays well with the 3P shooting of Kellan Grady.

The 6-foot-5 junior underwent surgery to repair a torn meniscus in early December, and only returned to full strength late in the season. Already a 1000 point scorer, Grady, and Gudmundsson form one of the best backcourts in the country.

The loss of their top three players leaves Auburn with a huge hole on both sides of the court. The Tigers will be strong inside with 6-foot-11 senior center Austin Wiley and 6-foot-7 forward Danjel Purifoy, but will miss the leadership of Harper and Brown.

Davidson is always well-coached and brings experience and leadership with its five returning starters. Sophomore Luka Brajkovic will use his 6-foot-10, 250-pound frame to battle the Tigers inside, while Gudmundsson and Grady will challenge the inexperienced Auburn backcourt.

I'll gladly take the 3 points in a game Davidson could very well win.

The Pick: Davidson +3 [In New Jersey? Bet now at PointsBet]

Washington vs. Baylor

  • Spread: Baylor -5
  • Over/Under: 137.5
  • Time: 9:30 p.m. ET
  • TV: ESPN

The headliner game of the 2019 Armed Forces Classic features the Washington Huskies and Baylor Bears playing at the Alaska Airlines Center in Anchorage, Alaska.

Baylor looked very impressive in its 105-61 home-opening thrashing of Central Arkansas. The Bears shot a blistering 18 of 33 from 3P range, highlighted by sophomore guard Jared Butler's 8 of 12 from beyond the arc.

The Bears lineup is greatly bolstered by the return of 6-foot-10 junior forward Tristan Clark (14.3 ppg, 6.2 rpg), who was lost to an injury after just three Big 12 games last season.

Head coach Scott Drew's team has size inside and depth on his bench, with eight players returning that averaged 10 or more minutes per game.

Meanwhile, Washington will play its first game of the season without four starters from last year's 27-9 team. Head coach Mike Hopkins will feature a strong recruiting class led by 6-foot-9 freshmen Isaiah Stewart and Jaden McDaniels. The Huskies will hope to mesh the athletic duo with Kentucky transfer Quade Green and athletic wing Naz Carter.

However, the Huskies face the challenge of developing team chemistry in a road game against an experienced and talented Baylor team. The Bears will not be fazed by Washington's zone defensive scheme, as the Bears play with similar defensive principles.

Even with all its success last season, Washington struggled to defend the 3P shot, a bad sign against this Baylor team. The Huskies allowed opponents to shoot 33.4% from beyond the arc, which ranked 116th nationally. This year's team will not defend as well early in the season, making this matchup even more problematic as the first game of the season.

The country has not realized how talented and balanced this Baylor team is, and it is early in the season for the Huskies to put forth the type of effort necessary to earn this neutral-site win.

I'll take the under-appreciated Bears on the road to cover against an inexperienced Washington team trying to replace four major starters.

The Pick: Baylor -5 [In New Jersey? Bet now at PointsBet]

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