Daily Dunk: Best College Basketball Bets Today (Predictions for Virginia-Duke, Arkansas-Florida, and More)

We posted back-to-back profitable days in the Daily Dunk to end the work week, going 3-0 on Thursday and 2-1 on Friday.

Let's see if we can keep that momentum going into the weekend. Today's slate of games is loaded, with plenty of games having significant impacts on both upcoming conference tournaments and the NCAA Tournament next month.

Let's take a look at my top three plays for today.

Best College Basketball Bets Today

Odds via FanDuel Sportsbook

Virginia +10.5 (-110) vs. Duke
Colorado +18.5 (-102) vs. Houston
Arkansas +9.5 (-105) vs. Florida

Virginia vs. Duke Prediction

I firmly believe Duke is the best team in the country and should win this game, but a 10.5-point spread is too steep for my liking. The Cavaliers' numbers aren't far off from Duke's. Virginia ranks 42nd in effective field goal percentage and 25th in defensive efficiency.

Where Virginia shines the most is making the most of its possessions. The Cavaliers rank 11th in the country in effective possession ratio, largely due to their elite rebounding and ability not to turn the ball over.

Let's not get it twisted, Duke is the better team, but covering a 10.5-point spread is a big ask. I'll take the points with the Cavs.

Pick: Virginia +10.5 (-110)

Colorado vs. Houston Prediction

I don't trust Houston's offense to lead the Cougars to a dominant enough win to cover this big spread. Houston ranks just 177th in effective field goal percentage at 51.4%. That number drops all the way to 43.3% over their last three games, which could be a bad sign of things to come for this time.

Colorado has a lot of issues defensively, but at least the Buffaloes are a better shooting team, ranking 110th in eFG% at 53%.

Houston is able to win by margin when they can force turnovers and create extra scoring chances for themselves, but I think they'll struggle to do that against a Colorado team that ranks 39th in turnovers per possession, coughing the ball up on just 14.2% of their possessions.

I'll take the points with Colorado.

Pick: Colorado +18.5 (-102)

Arkansas vs. Florida Prediction

I'm not sold on Florida being as good as its record indicates. Arkansas is one of the best shooting teams in the country, ranking 17th in effective field goal percentage, whereas Florida ranks just 84th.

Look for turnovers to play a big role in this game. No team in the country turns the ball over at a lower rate than the Razorbacks, who cough the ball up on just 12% of their possessions. Meanwhile, turnovers have been a bit of an issue for the Gators. They turn the ball over on 16.1% of possessions, which ranks 158th in the country.

I'll take the points with the Razorbacks on Saturday night.

Pick: Arkansas +9.5 (-105)

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