The Power Four conference tournaments are getting underway, but the first couple of rounds do not feature good teams. So, rather than cover games played by teams destined for the NIT, today's NCAA College Basketball Best Bets will cover a pair of small conference title games.
We've got the Siena Saints taking on the Merrimack Warriors in the MAAC Championship and the Detroit Mercy Titans playing the Wright State Riders for the Horizon League title.
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Tuesday’s Best College Basketball Picks & Predictions
(Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook)
Horizon League Championship-Final: Detroit Mercy Titans vs. Wright State Riders
Wright State has dominated the all-time series, winning 27 of 37 meetings, including the last one (Feb. 1). However, Detroit Mercy won the previous seven.
The first game saw the Riders take a 44-33 lead into the break. The Titans staged a valiant comeback attempt in the second, outscoring Wright State 49-40, but fell short, losing by two, 84-82. In the second, Detroit Mercy took a small lead into the break, 40-34. The Riders closed the gap in the second but fell short, losing by three (77-74).
The Riders have a slightly better offense and defense, but just by a few points.
On paper, these are two comparable teams, hence the close finishes in both regular-season games. But in tournament play, they scored 90 and 100 points. I'm going to go with the red-hot offense in this one.
Pick: Wright State -4.5 (-110)
MAAC Championship-Final: Siena Saints vs. Merrimack Warriors
This will be the third game between these two teams this season. Merrimack ended up winning both so far, but they were close, hard-fought games. In the first game, the Warriors dominated the first half, leading 38-22 at the break. But the second half went the other way, with Siena dominating despite falling short in the end as Merrimack won, 63-59.
As for the second, the halves were more contested this time. Merrimack still won the first, 37-32, before Siena took the second, 34-29. With the game tied at 66-66, they went to overtime, where the Warriors outscored the Saints 13-6 for a 79-72 win. Siena won the rebound battle in both games, but Merrimack dominated from beyond the three-point line.
They hit 9-of-20 attempts to 4-of-16 for Siena in the first game, but in the second, the Warriors hit 11-of-25 to 5-of-20 for the Saints. There were other differences, but all were minor in comparison to the three-point line.
Both teams are defense-oriented with offenses that are decent enough to win some games. Both averaged approximately 66 points per game allowed this season. While they allowed over their averages in the second game, they held each other under in the first. In tournament play, they have both held their opponents to 61 points or less. Expect both defenses to come up big in today's game and keep the score low.
Pick: Under 124.5 Total Points (-110)
