5 Tips for Betting on the 2024-25 College Basketball Season

The 2024-25 Men’s College Basketball season is officially underway and all roads lead to the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, for the 2024-25 NCAAM Basketball Championship.

However, for many, the journey getting to March Madness and the Men’s Championship might be a daunting one. This is especially true for those of you just getting into betting on College Basketball. Yet, even seasoned veterans can always take a moment to reexamine how they handicap the sport.

With that said, let’s take a look at five expert tips for betting on College Basketball. These NCAA men’s College Basketball betting tips might be the difference between you losing a wager or experiencing the euphoria of cutting down the nets after a sweet victory.

These College Basketball betting tips assume that you already know what the popular wager types are like spreads, moneylines, totals, futures and prop bets. If not, then take a look at our basketball betting guide for more information before proceeding to the tips below.

Tip 1: Narrow Down The Landscape

Unlike the NFL or NBA, Men’s College Basketball is a massive landscape. That’s why there are 68 teams that play in the NCAAM Basketball Tournament to decide the sport’s champion each year.

Currently, there are more than 350 schools that are members of 32 Division 1 College Basketball conferences. Let that sink in for a moment. On a side note, Alaska is the only state without a Division 1 basketball program. Sorry Alaska, but nobody wants to play there in the winter.

This sport has a massive footprint and it can be extremely difficult trying to keep up with all that’s going on. In fact, it’s nearly impossible to stay on top of everything that’s happening across the D1 basketball landscape.

The first thing you should do when betting on College Basketball is to narrow down the landscape so that you can better handicap the sport.

For example, instead of trying to monitor over 30 conferences, beginners should narrow it down to the most popular NCAAB men’s conferences as there will be more information, coverage and betting lines to choose from.

There was a time where sharp bettors could find outliers and take advantage of sportsbooks by betting on smaller schools, conferences or obscure games. Those advantages are very little nowadays. In fact, they’re becoming an endangered species due to the advanced technology and systems that the sportsbooks use to set their lines.

So, sticking to the popular conferences will provide you with a concentrated focus. Conferences like the SEC, Big Ten, Big 12, and ACC are a great place to start when betting on College Basketball since most of the best programs and players are found there.

Tip 2: Shop Around The College Basketball Betting Sites

The days of being forced to wager at one site, one sportsbook, or a local bookie are over. In fact, that era is as extinct as dinosaurs. Currently, there are countless options for betting online. Additionally, nearly 80% of the United States has legalized sports betting in one way or another.

This means that access to betting on College Basketball is easier than ever. From a few taps on your phone to a few clicks at your desktop computer, you can place wagers on men’s college hoops at any time and from anywhere.

This also means that you have plenty of options to choose from. And, when the buyer has options, the buyer has the power.

As a sports bettor, you have the power to decide which sportsbook that you want to bet on Men’s College Basketball at. So, it’s important that you use that power to your advantage by shopping around for the best lines and betting value.

Don’t worry! We’re not going to drop that nugget of info without giving you some examples of what to look for when you are shopping around. I mean, it would be barbaric of us if we didn’t.  

Before you start the shopping process, you need to sign up at three to five of the best sports betting sites. This will give you the ability to bet at different sportsbooks when you find optimal betting lines.

So, take advantage of the bonuses for first time deposits and any other benefits that these online sportsbooks give out to new customers.

And, believe us, they will all give out bonuses along with offering wild promotions to draw in new customers since there’s a vast sea of competition.

Now that you have signed up at a few of these sportsbooks, check out the following tips for shopping around:

Look For College Basketball Betting Promotions

Some sportsbooks will incentivize betting on College Basketball by offering bonuses or free bets. We strongly encourage you to jump on these opportunities when they arise as it’s a great way to reduce the risk of your bankroll by using “free money”.

These offerings are often found when March Madness is about to begin. Yet, some sportsbooks will roll out various promotions during the season as well. So, always keep an eye out for these types of promos to take advantage of.

Find The Lowest Vig

Vig is a sports betting term for a commission. In other words, this is the fee that the sportsbook charges on any betting line.

For example, Sportsbook A is listing the Duke Blue Devils spread of -3 points at -110 odds. However, Sportsbook B is listing Duke’s -3 point spread at -115 odds and Sportsbook C is listing the spread at -105 odds.

Sportsbook C has the lowest vig, which equates to a lower amount you have to risk in order to win $100. At -105 odds, you would have to wager $105 to win $100. At -115 odds, you would be required to wager $115 to win $100. In this example, you save $10 of your bankroll by shopping around for a lower vig.

Compare The Lines

There are times when competing sportsbooks might feature sizable differences in betting lines for the same game.

For example, if Duke is a -3 point favorite to beat North Carolina at Sportsbook A and Sportsbook B, but they’re a -2.5 point favorite at Sportsbook C. Depending on which way you bet this spread, you could see an increase in your chances of winning.

If you are betting on Duke to cover the spread, then you want to go with Sportsbook C because a three-point victory means you win your wager. However, at Sportsbook A and B, a three-point victory means you would push.

If you are betting on North Carolina to cover the spread, then you want to go with Sportsbook A and B because you get up to three points that they can lose by. That’s a full point more than Sportsbook C who lists North Carolina at +2.5 points. Since there are no half points in any basketball league, you basically need UNC not to lose by more than two points.

A half point can be the difference between winning and losing a wager.

Tip 3: Familiarize Yourself With The College Basketball Schedule

As mentioned above, the College Basketball landscape is vast and deep. After narrowing down your focus to selected Conferences, it’s important that you familiarize yourself with major points of interest along the sport’s calendar.

We recommend marking your calendar for major points of interest like: In-Season Tournaments, the start of Conference Schedules, and any Rivalry Games.

In-Season Tournaments

In-Season Tournaments are a great way to bet on early season matchups between talented teams that normally don’t face each other.

These games can help us to see how good a team really is or give us an indication as to how much a team needs to evolve throughout the season. Additionally, these tourneys are great opportunities to find value as sportsbooks don’t have much advantage over bettors when it comes to handicapping them.

With that said, some of our favorite early in-season tournaments include:

Maui Jim Maui Invitational (Nov. 25-27): Notable programs from SEC, Big 12, A 10, ACC, Big East and Big Ten will all head to Hawaii for a thrilling tournament with plenty of hardwood action and betting opportunity.

Battle 4 Atlantis (Nov. 27-29): This tournament is a great way to see how some of the sport’s exciting teams fare against each as schools like Gonzaga, Arizona, Louisville, Indiana and Providence will be in in action.

Conference Schedules

Conference play is an entirely different animal than tournaments and non-conference matchups. These games tend to be more tightly contested for the most past as the schools know each other really well, especially considering they play against each other on a yearly basis.

With that said, it’s important to know when the conference schedule begins along with other things like which teams are the top conference programs, which are the worst, home games versus away games, and more. 

Whatever conferences that you choose to focus on the most, make sure that you track when the in-conference play starts, how good the teams really are, any injuries, and how freshmen are developing compared to older teams with veteran leadership and experience.

Rivalry Games

Rivalry games are an even greater focus on in-conference matchups since these programs often have the biggest grudges against each other. One of the most popular College Basketball rivalries is Duke Blue Devis vs. North Carolina Tarheels.

In this rivalry, or others, the games are often heated, played at a higher level of intensity, and are often close matchups. So, it’s important to monitor any team news heading into rivalry games like injuries, players in slumps, and so much more.

Tip 4: Pay Attention To College Basketball Streaks and Trends

This tip can encompass a wide range of data from team results to betting trends. Both categories of data are important for your handicapping of College Basketball. Let’s take a look at some examples of both.  

College Basketball Streaks or Trends

Streaks are an indication of how well a team is performing. These streaks can encompass a wide range of data points that should be taken into consideration before placing any bets.

Some of the more common data points that can become streaks are consecutive wins or losses, points scored, how well a team performs at home or on the road, Conference wins or losses, how teams play with or without certain players and more.

It’s extremely important that you monitor data like this, and more, as it can become part of your handicapping system.

For example, if the Kansas Jayhawks are undefeated at home this season, and you are looking at betting on their moneyline for an upcoming home game, that data point is a strong one to consider for betting on Kansas to win outright. But it’s not the only one.

So, it’s very important that you collect a vast amount of data and not just the first data point that you find or the one that supports your narrative.

For example, let’s continue with what we discussed above. Kansas is playing at home and they’re hosting the Gonzaga Bulldogs on a Sunday evening.

Instead of just going with the data point that Kansas is unbeaten at home this season, you dig deeper and see that the Jayhawks have only defeated teams with losing records when playing at home. And, you also discover that Kansas has lost three in a row to Gonzaga along with dropping their last four Sunday games.

Initially, you were ready to jump on Kansas to win because they’re unbeaten at home up to this point. But finding out that they’ve only beaten bad teams at home, while having losing streaks against Gonzaga and on Sundays, makes it less likely that you will take the Jayhawks to win the game outright.

The more data points you have, the more clarity you will find in your handicapping process. And, the more informed wager you can make.

College Basketball Betting Trends

In addition to the basketball trends or streaks above, betting trends are another layer of data points to add to your College Basketball handicapping. These trends concentrate on betting data that can further help to make informed wagers.

Let’s continue with the previous example from above.

In addition to Gonzaga having won three in a row versus Kansas, the Bulldogs have also covered the spread in five consecutive matchups between the two teams. That means, whether favored or not, Gonzaga has kept the games within the listed spread.

Additionally, when those two teams play, the Over is 5-0 in the last five games. So, now we see that not only does Gonzaga matchup well with Kansas, they tend to come out on the winning side of things while also covering the spread and scoring a lot of points.

On the surface, and without using specific betting lines, the majority of this data supports taking Gonzaga to beat the Jayhawks in Kansas. The only data point that supported Kansas was that they were unbeaten at home up to that game.

However, the deeper we dug, the more that we discovered data supporting a wager on the Bulldogs.

Tip 5: Monitor Player Transactions

Just like with professional sports, it’s imperative that you monitor player transactions for College Basketball. So, if you find that there’s a game you are interested in wagering on, and you found solid betting value along with numerous data points that properly handicaps the game, then one final nugget of information to look at is the player transactions.

All the data points above are great for handicapping the game, but if a team’s best player pulls a muscle in the pregame shootaround then that data means nothing because that team will be playing with a severe limitation.

In addition to players missing games, keep an eye out for any minute restrictions, how players fare at home or on the road, if they’ve been sick, or if they’re facing any disciplines for off-court behaviors.

Any one of these examples can definitely affect how a team performs especially if it’s against a rival or talented opponent.

It should also be noted that handicapping College Basketball can be done in the offseason as well. A great data point to monitor during the offseason is the transfer portal. A player transferring to a new school can shift the landscape of a team and conference. So, make sure you keep track of any notable additions or departures to a team’s roster especially at the beginning of the season.

Do You Still Need Help Betting On College Basketball?

Yes, we are well aware that there’s a lot of work that goes into handicapping and betting on College Basketball. This effort is the difference between beginners vs. experienced bettors, lazy vs. successful bettors, and winners vs. losers.

However, if you find that you still need some extra assistance then check out the ScoresandStats Handicapping Service.

This service offers a monthly membership where you can access College Basketball picks from hundreds of high-quality handicappers. Additionally, the advanced search function allows you to dig deep when filtering what type of bet and what kind of handicapper you are looking for.