3 Best College Basketball Bets and Player Props for Tuesday 2/4/25

The college basketball season is rolling along, giving us plentiful betting options with so many teams in action each day.

Fortunately, we have abundant tools available that can aid our chances of finding good betting value. Bart Torvik and KenPom are excellent sources that give insights into team-level efficiency, and Sports Reference provides a wide range of useful team stats, as well.

Let's check out FanDuel Sportsbook's college basketball odds and select some of the best bets of the day by utilizing the mentioned tools.

Please note lines are subject to change throughout the day after this article is published.

Today's Best College Basketball Betting Picks

Marquette at St. John's

RJ Luis (SJU) Over 23.5 Pts + Reb

Wednesday's game of the night takes place at Madison Square Garden as Marquette and St. John's clash in a bout between the Big East's top two teams. The winner of this game will be in the driver's seat for the regular season conference title, so don't expect either side to switch things up now.

This is an intriguing spot to target Red Storm wing RJ Luis over 23.5 combined points and rebounds (PR).

In league play, Luis has averaged 18.1 points and 7.1 rebounds per game. He's averaging 1.5 more shots per game than he did in non-conference action, helping him accrue at least 24 PR in six of 11 Big East games. He's notched at least 21 PR in all but two conference games, putting him well in range of tonight's 23.5-PR line.

The matchup is where we can really feel confident in Luis' outlook. Though Marquette is 16th nationally in adjusted defense, their conference scoring defense ranks just fourth in the Big East. They've been pummeled by opposing wings in league play, permitting the conference's third-most points and most rebounds (per 40 min) to the position.

With a high total and tight spread, Marquette-St. John's figures to come down to the wire. Given how much of a focal point Luis has been for the Red Storm, he's well-positioned to go over 23.5 PR in a plus matchup.

Oklahoma State at Houston

Houston -21.5 (-110)

Houston is 17-4 and rates as the second-best team in the country, according to KenPom. But they're fresh off their first conference loss of the season -- one which snapped the country's longest active home win streak.

That's less than ideal for Oklahoma State as they head to Houston with +21.5 attached to their name. That's a wide spread for a conference game, but it's one a motivated Houston squad should breeze past in a bounce back spot.

Even with an L their last time out, the Cougars are still (statistically) the most dominant team in the conference. They sport the Big 12's highest average point differential (+16.3) and top scoring defense (58 PPG)

Oklahoma State enters Wednesday with the Big 12's third-worst record (3-7) and third-worst average point differential (-8.9) in conference play. They've lost all five Big 12 road games by double-digits (and two by 20-plus) despite not yet traveling to Houston, Kansas, or Iowa State.

Those road struggles largely explain their measly 112th overall ranking on KenPom -- though eight of their 10 wins coming against teams outside the top 100 doesn't help matters. They've struggled mightily against the better teams on their schedule, going 2-9 (-11.5 average point differential) against top-100 teams and 0-6 (-14.5) against top-50 teams.

Houston, meanwhile, has rolled lesser competition. We just saw them smack Utah by 34 at home, and they've gone 5-0 with a +19.4 avgerage margin of victory against Power Conference teams outside the top 50.

With Houston coming off a major upset loss, look for them to right the ship against a lackluster Oklahoma State side. The Cougars haven't been shy about running up the score at home -- something I'm expecting tonight against Oklahoma State.

Purdue at Iowa

Purdue Over 81.5 Points (-116)

Purdue hits the road for a primetime date with Iowa, and that bodes well for the Boilermakers' offense. With Iowa sporting the Big Ten's worst scoring defense (83.9 PPG) and second-fastest average pace, Purdue is in an interesting spot to go over their 81.5-point team total.

The Boilermakers are just sixth in Big Ten scoring (78.3) but they feature the country's 10th-best adjusted offense per KenPom. That discrepancy is thanks to their slow pace of play; Purdue ranks 290th nationally in adjusted tempo and has the conference's third-slowest average pace.

Even so, Purdue has regularly found itself in the 80-point scoring range. They've cracked 80 points in six of 11 conference games, and Iowa has given up at least 80 points in five of their nine league dates.

There's not much doubt that Purdue will carve up Iowa's 153rd-ranked defense on a per-possession basis as the Boilers rarely struggle in that regard. They do, however, need some help from the opposing team to run up high point totals. That's where Iowa comes in.

The Hawkeyes are 29th nationally in adjusted tempo, helping their conference games average 164.7 total points -- six more than the next-closest team. We've seen Purdue turn up in these pace-up spots, too. The Boilers have faced seven teams ranked inside the top 100 for average tempo, and they've gone over 81.5 points in five of those.

Purdue can take advantage of Iowa's suspect D and fast pace to go over 81.5 total points.

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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.