Best College Basketball Bets Today – Free (Friday 11/18)

The 2022-23 college basketball season is finally here. and we get some fun matchups to start the year. Below is my favorite bet for Friday’s slate. Let’s have some fun.

UCLA vs. Illinois

(Line: UCLA -2.5, DraftKings Sportsbook)

We have a great showdown in Vegas between UCLA and Illinois, who both are off to hot starts to the season (even though the level of competition hasn’t been great). The story for the Bruins to start the year has been the emergence of Jaylen Clark and his stellar play on the wing replacing sharpshooter Johnny Juzang. Interior defense is still a question mark for UCLA, but they return high-level upperclassmen, and the wing combination of Amari Bailey and Jaylen Clark has the potential to be better than Juzang and Bernard from a year ago. Illinois has the daunting task of replacing 7-foot behemoth Kofi Cockburn and their veteran leader Trent Frazier, but the Texas Tech transfer Terrence Shannon and junior big man Coleman Hawkins have really stepped up their game for the Illini to replace production. Brad Underwood has ramped up the defensive pressure this season with his more versatile roster but that may be a bad idea against UCLA behind their veteran floor general Tyger Campbell.

Illinois has been pressing more frequently and turning teams over at a 28.7% rate so far this season, which ranks seventh nationally. Over the last two seasons under Mick Cronin, UCLA has been outstanding at taking care of the ball ranking in the top 25 in turnover rate on offense. It also helps when you have the ball in the hands one of the best point guards in the country in Tyger Campbell. The Bruins main concern defensively is on the interior but Illinois plays more of a 5-out style of offense this year without Cockburn and I don’t think they have the ability to exploit UCLA’s soft interior. I see the Bruins handling the defensive pressure with relative ease and have much more success on the offensive end in this one. The Bruins certainly have the advantage in the backcourt as Campbell will go against the freshman Skyy Clark. We’ve yet to see a breakout performance from Wooden Award candidate Jaime Jaquez and this uptempo game environment could be the perfect spot for him to do so. 

The Pick: UCLA -2.5