2 Best College Basketball Bets and Player Props for Colorado State vs. Memphis

The 12 seed Colorado State Rams enter Friday's first-round matchup versus the 5 seed Memphis Tigers as favorites following a Mountain West Conference tournament title. Both of these programs enter the men's college basketball tournament in fantastic form, with the Rams currently on a 10-game winning streak and the Tigers amid an 8-game streak.

Who will advance further in this year's tourney and hope to make a deep postseason run as an underdog?

To see thoughts on other games, check out our full men's college basketball tournament predictions page. But for Colorado State vs. Memphis, here are my favorite bets in FanDuel Sportsbook's college basketball betting odds.

On top of that, FanDuel Sportsbook is also offering a promo for customers betting on an underdog in the tournament!

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Betting Picks for Colorado State vs. Memphis

Colorado State -1.5 (-114)

There aren't many instances where a 12 seed is listed as an outright favorite over a 5 seed in the tournament, but that's what has happened ahead of Friday's Colorado State-Memphis contest. KenPom has the Rams ranked 44th overall while BartTorvik has them sitting at 39th (compared to the Tigers residing at 50th on KenPom and 60th on BartTorvik), so it's not too much of a surprise to see Colorado State favored.

The Rams hang their hat on a 55.8% effective field-goal percentage (24th), 74.7% defensive rebound rate (16th), and 36.6% three-point percentage (46th). Crashing the defensive glass should help Colorado State limit Memphis' ability to generate second-chance points, as the Tigers are 37th in offensive rebound rate (35.1%).

Throughout the season, the Rams have gone 16-6 against the spread (ATS) as favorites and 4-3 ATS with a rest advantage. On the other hand, the Tigers are 6-8 ATS when playing with a rest disadvantage, with Memphis last playing on Sunday and Colorado State last taking the court on Saturday.

Nique Clifford Over 29.5 Points + Rebounds (-115)

If Colorado State ends up becoming one of the next 12 seeds to beat a 5 seed, Nique Clifford will likely be doing plenty of the heavy lifting. Clifford is 10th in BartTorvik's box plus/minus (+10.5), and FanDuel Research's Riley Thomas spoke about Clifford as one of the five players to watch in the men's college basketball tournament.

Entering the tourney, Clifford paces the Rams in PPG (19.0), RPG (9.7), and APG (4.4) on a stellar 58.0% effective field-goal percentage and 39.8% three-point percentage. The senior wing also leads Colorado State in usage rate (27.7%) and defensive rebound rate (26.6%), making his points-plus-rebounds prop worth checking out against Memphis.

Across his 34 starts this season, Clifford has achieved 30-plus points and rebounds in 17 of those contests, including in five of his last six outings. With Clifford posting 30-plus points and rebounds against the Boise State Broncos and Utah State Aggies -- teams that are both ranked higher than Memphis on BartTorvik -- during the MWC tournament, I expect him to continue shining on an even bigger stage on Friday.

Which bets stand out to you for today's games? Check out FanDuel Sportsbook's latest men's college basketball betting odds to see the full menu of options.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.

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