College Football Best Bets of the Week: Week 9
Walter Waddell
Check out our entire college basketball season preview!
The college basketball season is less than three weeks away, and here at FTN Fantasy we have you covered for what promises to be another thrilling year of upsets and incredible finishes. I will be taking you around the country with a betting preview of the major conferences. I recap the betting trends from last season, list projected starters, preview the season, identify a key player, and reveal how I’m backing or fading each team.
Let’s continue with the largest conference in college basketball, the Big Ten. This conference underwent massive changes, adding four new teams from the Pac-12 in Washington, USC, Oregon and UCLA. The expansion has not diluted the competitive level of the Big Ten, ranking third (same as last year) in KenPom preseason rankings.
Let’s check out our betting preview for the Minnesota Golden Gophers. I give a huge shout-out to our newest contributor, Gus Kearns, for his extensive research on the Big Ten.
2024-2025 College Basketball Season Preview: Minnesota Golden Gophers
Conference: Big Ten
Head Coach: Ben Johnson (4th season)
2023-2024 Record: 19-15 (9-11)
ATS: 25-9
O/U: 18-16
Projected Starters: G Lu’Cye Patterson; G Mike Mitchell Jr.; F Femi Odukale; F Dawson Garcia; F Frank Mitchell
Head coach Ben Johnson has done an underrated job in his three season with the Golden Gophers. He improved Minnesota from a brutal 2-17 Big Ten record to 9-11 last season, winning enough games to qualify for the NIT Tournament, where they earned a true road upset at Butler. Johnson’s toughness has been supplemented by Dawson Garcia’s immense talent (17.6 PPG, 6.7 RPG, 1.0 BPG). But this is a balanced attack, as the Gophers rebound the ball ( 2.1 rebound margin), share the ball (17.3 APG, 17th in the nation) and shoot the ball efficiently (47.2 FG%, 47th in the nation).
Garcia will remain the offensive hub and is the top returning scorer inside the Big Ten. The backcourt will be sticky defensively with transfers Lu’Cye Patterson (Charlotte), Tyler Cochran (Toledo) and Caleb Williams (Division III). While Frank Mitchell (Canisius) will grab every defensive rebound his 6-foot-8, 240 frame allows. The Gophers need a wing who can guard and stretch the floor and hope Femi Odukale (New Mexico State) can fill that void.
Key Player: Dawson Garcia
Everything runs through Garcia, whose versatility will be the center of Minnesota’s attack on both ends of the floor. There are a ton of new faces, and the Golden Gophers only return 37.3% of their minutes from last year. Minnesota lost Cam Christie to the NBA, Elijah Hawkins to Texas Tech and four other key players. Johnson has understandably struggled to win the Big Ten recruiting war, so he has to rebuild through the portal. Garcia’s production and leadership is the key to everything Minnesota does.
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