4 Best Bets and Player Props for Friday's Women's College Basketball Tournament Games

The women's college basketball tournament is heating up.

After a chalky opening weekend, the Round of 16 tips off Friday afternoon and features four different games to sift through.

Here are the women's tournament bets that stand out most in FanDuel Sportsbook's women's college basketball betting odds.

Women's College Basketball Betting Picks for Today

North Carolina vs. Duke

Under 123.5 (-114)

To begin Friday's action, North Carolina and Duke will face off for the third time this season. The home team won both prior meetings, but the bigger takeaway revolved around the UNC offense.

Simply, they could not score against Duke -- a team ranked 6th nationally in Bart Torvik's adjusted defensive efficiency.

The Tar Heels needed overtime to score 53 points in their win against Duke before the Blue Devils held them to 53 in regulation during the rematch.

It adds up though, and it's an angle we can take advantage of via this 123.5-point over/under.

North Carolina is just 47th in adjusted offense and outside the top 200 in adjusted tempo. They're more than happy to brawl it out in low-scoring games, putting their 9th-ranked defense to work.

That's Duke's game, too -- they just do it a little better. The Blue Devils are 28th on offense and 198th in adjusted tempo, and they're the better defensive team. They forced 46 UNC turnovers across their two matchups and finished the season ranked 17th in forced turnover rate.

But UNC also defended Duke quite well; they actually had a higher field goal percentage in both games. That's something we can put stock in, even if UNC's offense doesn't show up.

I have this game projected for just 116 points. Bart Torvik projects it for 117. Given how the first two meetings went, I'm happy to back the under at 123.5 in what should be a true rock fight.

Maryland vs. South Carolina

Joyce Edwards Over 14.5 Points (-106)

I want to buy into the South Carolina offense against Maryland -- it's just hard to do so via the point spread (South Carolina -17.5). Instead, we can turn to Gamecocks leading scorer Joyce Edwards to go over 14.5 total points.

Edwards was a consensus top-3 recruit coming into the year, and she hasn't disappointed in her freshman season, pacing South Carolina with 13.2 points per game. The interior forward has thrived in pace-up spots -- she averages 15.5 points against teams in the top 100 for adjusted tempo -- and in soft matchups, cracking 15 points in 9 of 15 games against defenses outside the top-25.

Maryland's the kind of opponent Edwards should feast against. The Terrapins are the lowest-rated remaining team on Torvik (24th), and their defense isn't impressive. Maryland is 50th nationally in adjusted tempo, 70th nationally on defense and outside the top 200 in two-point field goal percentage allowed. In Big Ten play, the Terrapins gave up an above-average number of points in the paint.

That sets Joyce Edwards up for a bounce-back game. She popped for 22 points in their opening round win against Tennessee Tech but managed just 5 points on 2-8 shooting against Indiana last time out. The Hoosiers (22nd in adjusted defense) were a significantly worse matchup than Maryland, so the softer matchup plays well into Joyce Edwards over 14.5 points.

LSU vs. NC State

LSU -3.5 (-104)

LSU-NC State has the tightest spread among Friday's women's college basketball games, but I don't think we're guaranteed a particularly close affair. LSU beat the Wolfpack by 17 earlier in the year, and they haven't showed anything to warrant skepticism in their ability to do it again.

The Tigers, despite being the lower seed, have rated out as a better team than NC State for the bulk of the season. Entering the Round of 16, LSU is 11th at Bart Torvik. NC State is 14th.

Now, 3.5 is a wide spread even if we like LSU to win outright. But the Tigers have proven capable of covering this against all but the very best teams in the country -- of which NC State is not. If we ignore their games versus top-six Torvik teams, LSU has a 7-3 record and +7.0 average point differential in top-30 matchups. Six of those seven wins came by at least 4 points, and LSU scored at least 80 points in seven of the nine games.

NC State is just 4-3 in that split, but two of those three losses came when they allowed more than 70 points. On the season, the Wolfpack are 4-4 when allowing 75 points or more. Of their six total losses, four have come by at least 4 points -- and three by double-digits.

LSU's offense is just going to be too much for NC State to handle. The Tigers are 13th in adjusted offense and 19th in adjusted tempo, and that's helped them average 75.7 points against top-25 defenses. They've cleared 75 points in seven of those 11 games.

NC State (83rd in adjusted tempo) also likes to run, but that could play right into LSU's hands. They're 16-0 against other teams in the top 100 for adjusted tempo.

Still, the biggest advantage LSU will have is on the glass. The Tigers are 3rd nationally in offensive rebound rate and have an eye-popping +4.9 average rebound margin against top 50 opponents. NC State is just +0.8 in the rebounding department against top 50 teams, and they've lost five of seven games where they lost the rebounding battle.

Expecting the Tigers to roll on offense and dominate the glass, I'm comfortable with LSU -3.5 against NC State.

Ole Miss vs. UCLA

Lauren Betts to Record a Double-Double (-120)

UCLA will see a step up in competition in their Round of 16 game against Ole Miss -- a team ranked 13th at Bart Torvik. But the Rebels are the only remaining team in the field with double-digit losses, and the Bruins are favored by 8.5.

So, we should expect UCLA to get some push here, but it's by no means a bad matchup. Assuming the Bruins need to play their starters for the majority of the game, this is an intriguing spot to target Lauren Betts coming off a monster game. She scored 30 points and grabbed 14 rebounds in a 17-point win over Richmond.

For the season, Betts is averaging 19.7 points and 9.7 rebounds per game. She's top-10 nationally in double-doubles, accomplishing that feat in 18 of 31 games.

Yet, her odds of recording a double-double are just -120.

Betts' double-double totals from the season and even more impressive considering how often her minutes were limited in UCLA routs. But she's averaged 33.8 minutes against top 30 teams and just played 32 in the Second Round.

When Lauren Betts' minutes rise, she becomes a much more likely threat to record a double-double. In 16 games Betts has cleared 30 minutes, she's recorded 11 double-doubles.

Ole Miss doesn't really have anyone to deal with her height, either. The Rebels don't feature a single rotation player taller than 6'2". At 6'7", Betts should feast against a team that's let up 35 points in the paint per game to top-50 teams, the second-highest mark of any team still in the field.

With UCLA favored by 8.5 points, I'd consider combining this Betts double-double prop with the Bruins' moneyline. A Same Game Parlay featuring Lauren Betts to Record a Double-Double and UCLA moneyline comes out to +124 odds on FanDuel Sportsbook.

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

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Which bets stand out to you for the upcoming games? Check out FanDuel Sportsbook's latest women'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.