Saturday’s college basketball schedule is shaping up to be a wild one with excitement likely to spill over throughout the day. With 14 ranked teams playing on the road, most of them either narrow favorites or narrow underdogs, we could be in for a tumultuous day in sports that saw 11 ranked teams stumble just one week after Saturday’s slate — the most in a single day since 2011.
In the ACC, No. 10 Virginia and No. 17 Miami are on the road at Wake Forest and Duke, respectively. In the Big 12, No. 7 Texas draws a tough roadie at West Virginia, while No. 12 Iowa State and No. 21 Baylor travel to Sooner State to face Oklahoma and Oklahoma State, respectively. In the SEC, No. 4 Alabama is at Missouri, No. 9 Tennessee heads to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to face LSU and No. 16 Auburn draws a talented South Carolina team at Colonial Life Arena.
Chaos abounds, so prepare yourself accordingly.
Below, our experts have picks and predictions for the day’s biggest games in what looks to be one of the best individual slates of the season at this point.
Odds via Caesars Sportsbook | Always east
Miami at No. 17 Duke
Featured game | Duke Blue Devils vs. Miami (Fla.) Hurricanes
12 noon ESPN, fuboTV (try free) — Coming off a loss to Clemson inside Cameron Indoor Stadium and a week of preparation, Duke looks to be a narrow favorite to defend its home-court advantage in the chalk game here. But few of us, myself included, are in a place like Miami to lift the W straight up. With Jeremy Roach still out, the Blue Devils’ backcourt is still a sore spot and Miami’s guard play, among the ACC’s best, is nicely positioned to take advantage. Prediction: Miami +5.5 — Boone
Featured game | Kansas Jayhawks vs. TCU Horned Frogs
1 o’clock CBS, CBSSports.com, CBS Sports App (Free) — These teams split their series last season, and TCU nearly pulled out its first win at Kansas before the Jayhawks got a late defensive stop in a close game. The Horned Frogs are an experienced team that will not be intimidated by the exciting atmosphere inside Allen Fieldhouse. They already have a Big 12 road win at Baylor and will believe they can get another. The Jayhawks are a good bet to win outright because of how dominant they are at home, but it would be a surprise if TCU folds easily in this top-15 battle. Prediction: TCU +7.5 — David Cobb
Featured game | Arizona Wildcats vs. UCLA Bruins
2 pm ABC, fuboTV (try free) — This has a chance to be the best game of the Saturday slate. UCLA, winners of 14 straight behind a top-five defense, heads to the desert to take on an Arizona team that is rightfully the most explosive offense in the sport. Jonah has looked mortal in points this season, even at home, so I’m riding with the road team as the Bruins look to stay hot. Prediction: UCLA -1 — Boone
Texas is No. 7 at West Virginia
Featured game | West Virginia Mountaineers vs. Texas Longhorns
6 pm ESPN, fuboTV (try free) — West Virginia is a stingy team to play in Morgantown, West Virginia, but it’s a line that looks amazing. Texas has more talent, a better overall roster and body of work that outlasts WVU, which has lost five of its last six outside of a win over TCU this week. Texas +1.5
No. 4 Alabama at Missouri
Featured game | Missouri Tigers vs. Alabama Crimson Tide
6 pm SEC Network, fuboTV (try free) — Here are my favorite upsets of the week. Bumber is 16-2 and has won 11 of 12, and Mizzou has fallen late with three losses in its last five after a 12-1 start. The Tigers blew out their home earlier this season outside of Kansas, nailing home. I like them to give Bama a big push in this place. Missouri +6 — Boone
Who will win and cover every college basketball game? Visit SportsLine to pick from a model that simulates each game 10,000 times and over $1,200 for a $100 player on its top-rated spread picks over the past six years.
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