Daily Dunk: Best College Basketball Bets Today (Predictions for Iowa State-Texas Tech, Texas A&M-Oklahoma and More)

We got back to our winning ways in yesterday's edition of the Daily Dunk, going 2-1 by winning on Iowa State and Clemson, but losing on the OVER in Mississippi State vs. Auburn.

Conference tournament action continues today, so let's try to post a second straight winning performance. It's time to dive into my top three plays for Thursday's action.

Best College Basketball Bets Today

Odds via Caesars Sportsbook

Iowa State -5 (-110) vs. Texas Tech
Davidson -7 (-115) vs. Loyola Chicago
Texas A&M -2.5 (-110) vs. Oklahoma

Iowa State vs. Texas Tech Prediction

Despite Texas Tech beating Iowa State a couple of weeks ago, I don't have faith in this Red Raiders team that is trying to keep its head above water with its best player, JT Toppin, sidelined for the rest of the season.

Texas Tech has some defensive issues to be aware of. The Red Raiders rank 122nd in the country in defensive efficiency, far below the Cyclones, who come in at eighth in that metric. Texas Tech also ranks 130th in turnovers per possession, coughing up the ball on 15.5% of possessions. That's a nightmare situation against an Iowa State team that forced 15.3 turnovers per game, the most amongst all power conference teams.

I'll lay the number on Iowa State.

Pick: Iowa State -5 (-110)

Loyola Chicago vs. Davidson Prediction

I'm surprised Davidson isn't a much larger favorite in this spot. The Wildcats are the far better team by every metric. For example, Davidson ranks 109th in effective field goal percentage and 103rd in defensive efficiency. By comparison, Loyola Chicago ranks 233rd and 324th in those two metrics.

Both teams also rank inside the top 100 in the country in 3-point shot rate, but Davidson ranks 85th in perimeter defense, and Loyola Chicago ranks 344th, allowing teams to shoot 37.2% from three-point range.

Pick: Davidson -7 (-115)

Oklahoma vs. Texas A&M Prediction

Defense is going to be the biggest factor in this game. The Sooners struggle on the defensive side of the court, ranking 271st in defensive efficiency. They have good enough shooting to get past bad teams, but Texas A&M can match them offensively, while being far better defensively.

Both teams rank inside the top 80 in 3-point shot rate, but Oklahoma allows teams to shoot 34.5% from beyond the arc while Texas A&M keeps teams to shooting just 31.9% from 3-point range.

Pick: Texas A&M -2.5 (-110)

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You can check out all of Iain's bets here!