3 Best College Basketball Bets and Player Props for Ole Miss vs. Michigan State

In a year of chalk, the 6 seed Ole Miss Rebels are trying to shake things up a bit.

Ole Miss demolished a shorthanded Iowa State -- the South region's 3 seed -- to advance to the second week. Their prize? A Michigan State Spartans team with a stifling defense that's used its depth to thwart upset efforts in the first two rounds.

Expecting a close game, Sparty is the smallest Round of 16 favorite on the board at FanDuel Sportsbook right now:

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

Betting Picks for Ole Miss-Michigan State

Ole Miss +3.5 (-105)
Ole Miss Moneyline (+140)

With whatever credit I get from picking Ole Miss to upset the Cyclones, I will spend it thinking Chris Beard's gang can advance to the regional finals.

The Runnin' Rebels have every piece required to succeed in the tournament, taking out KenPom's 11th and 32nd-best teams so far. Their entire rotation is built with upperclassmen, and they're one of just six teams left in the tournament that can say they're inside KenPom's top-25 adjusted offensive and defensive efficiency rankings.

Michigan State, ranked 25th on offense, doesn't meet the exact cheeky wording I used, but the main problem for Sparty in this matchup is that they're not well-equipped to exploit Ole Miss' key weakness. According to Bart Torvik, the Rebels are 317th of 364 Division 1 schools in three-point attempts allowed per game (43.7), but MSU shoots them at just a 31.1% clip (12th percentile across Division 1).

Not even including Iowa State, Ole Miss has five Quad-1A wins over teams that advanced to the second weekend of the tournament. Michigan State has just two mixed into a 4-3 record against the best of the best.

The Spartans are a solid defense, but there's been an element of both matchups and luck to only allow 9-for-37 (24.3%) opponent shooting from deep so far. They're also +12 in the foul column -- of which I don't need to remind Bryant fans.

Beard's battle-tested squad has shown up. I think they can be the reason why unranked-team-turned-2-seeds fall to 0-39, including St. John's this year, when it comes to reaching the last four teams standing in March.

Jace Richardson 2+ Threes Made (-104)

I like this prop on the other side, though.

One Spartan who shoots threes pretty well is Jase Richardson. Richardson has taken 5.4 per game in Michigan State's last seven contests, which is up from his season average of 3.1. The chips are down this time of year, after all.

He's splashed 40.6% of them for the year, including multiple treys drilled in six of his last seven. The exception? An 0-for-5 rough patch on Sunday against New Mexico.

As mentioned, the Rebels defend the three incredibly poorly, so Richardson should have a few quality looks.

I'm surprised he's not a much larger favorite in this market. The recent uptick in his hit rate relative to this prop is no coincidence given the increase in volume, and it's not like Ole Miss is a juggernaut that will prevent those looks.

Plus, the freshman's leash seems to be pretty long when he played 30 minutes despite 1-for-10 shooting on Sunday. MSU badly needs a "guy" late in games, and Tom Izzo could be turning to the projected NBA lottery pick as his best chance -- for better or worse.

You can also click here to get our updated printable Men's College Basketball Tournament bracket for the Round of 16.

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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.