3 Best College Basketball Bets and Player Props for Wednesday 2/12/25

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

Iowa at Rutgers

Over 161.5 (-115)

Two of the Big Ten's three fastest-paced teams square off at The RAC tonight when Iowa takes on Rutgers. With both sides sitting in the bottom half of the conference in scoring defense, this is the right kind of matchup to consider the over.

For the season, Iowa (13-10) and Rutgers (13-11) games have both gone over more than half the time. Iowa's Big Ten games have averaged 162.7 total points, whereas Rutgers' have averaged 149.5.

The Scarlett Knights have, however, gotten into a fair number of shootouts when facing fast-paced teams. Rutgers (92nd in adjusted tempo) has faced seven teams inside the top 100 for adjusted tempo. Those games averaged 158.1 total points.

Iowa (26th in adjusted tempo) has played eight games against top-100 tempo teams. Those averaged 166 total points, with six of them cracking 160.

So, pace-wise, this is a good spot for both sides. Neither should scare us defensively, either.

Rutgers is a measly 94th in adjusted defense, and they've let up 79.1 points per game against top-100 offenses. Iowa is even worse, ranking 154th in adjusted defense while permitting 83.4 points per game against top-100 offenses.

The Scarlett Knights (57th in adjusted offense) and Hawkeyes (31st) are both plenty efficient on offense, so points won't be too hard to come by with each side playing fast and lacking much prowess on the defensive end.

Bart Torvik and KenPom both project this game to finish north of 161.5 points. Given how fast-paced both Rutgers and Iowa both, I'm inclined to back the models and ride with the over.

Ole Miss at South Carolina

Sean Pedulla (MISS) to Score 15+ Points (+104)

No. 19 Ole Miss visits unranked South Carolina, with the road Rebels entering as 4.5-point favorites. While the Gamecocks play good defense at a slow pace, they've struggled to defend the perimeter in conference play. As such, I'm targeting Ole Miss guard Sean Pedulla to score 15+ points at +104 odds on FanDuel.

Pedulla enters Wednesday averaging 15.0 points per game on the season and 15.3 points per game in the SEC. He's hit 15 points in 7 of 11 conference games overall, including six of his last seven and four of five on the road.

The senior has a 22.6% usage rate and has attempted more than 12 shots per game during that stretch, setting him up nicely against a South Carolina side that's permitted the fourth-highest usage rate and fourth-most points (per 40 minutes) to guards in league play. They've let seven SEC guards reach 15 points against them while Wade Taylor, Mark Sears, and Josh Hubbard all went for 20-plus versus South Carolina.

Given his recent scoring trends and favorable matchup, Pedulla to score 15+ points is an appealing bet at +104 odds -- though his -130 odds to go over 13.5 points are just as attractive.

California at Duke

Duke Over 83.5 Points (-110)

California makes the long trip east to take on the No. 3 Duke Blue Devils tonight. As a 23.5-point favorite, Duke is (rightfully) expected to win this one with ease. I'd lean their direction if I had to choose one side of the spread, but there's a more efficient market to back the Blue Devils -- the over on their 83.5-point team total.

Duke enters Wednesday with KenPom's No. 5 adjusted offense while leading the ACC with 80.9 points per game. They've scored at least 84 points in six of 13 ACC games, including four of six conference home games.

The Blue Devils managed just 71 points in their loss to Clemson over the weekend, but the Tigers are a respectable 38th nationally in adjusted defense.

Cal isn't anywhere close to that level. If not for Miami, the Golden Bears may have the single-worst defense in the ACC. They're 204th nationally in adjusted defense and have given up the fifth-most points per game (75.5) in conference play. In six total games against top-50 offenses, they've surrendered more than 84 points three times.

Duke has faced five Power Conference teams ranked outside the top 100 in adjusted defense. They averaged 86.8 points per game in such outings, clearing 83.5 points four times.

This is a spot we can trust the Bart Torvik and KenPom projections as both have Duke forecasted for more than 84 points. I like the Blue Devils to bounce back at home and score over 83.5 points.

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Which bets stand out to you across the nation tonight? Check out FanDuel Sportsbook's latest 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.