NCAA Basketball Best Bets for February 14: UCLA Tops Indiana in Big Ten Battle
-
Willie Bee
- February 14, 2025
Top NCAAB Pick: UCLA -2 (-110) at Bookmaker (visit our Bookmaker Review)
Valentine’s Day is for lovers, as the old saying goes. It’s obviously not for college hoops fans who love to see marquee matchups, at least not this year with a very short list of games on the slate.
Of course, college basketball bettors can find love anytime there are lines out, and we’re romancing a couple of picks in the A-10 and Big Ten conferences.
Before placing your bets, check out the latest NCAAB odds from top-rated sportsbooks to make your heart day awesome.
Saint Louis Billikens vs. Loyola Chicago Ramblers
Friday, February 14, 2025 – 07:00 PM ET at Gentile Arena
While George Mason and VCU are pulling away at the top of the Atlantic 10, it’s an all-out battle behind them. Saint Louis and Loyola Chicago are part of a 9-team bunch within two games of each other, making for a huge clash between the Billikens and Ramblers.
Bookmaker is carrying the hosts as 2½-point favorites, and ESPN2 is carrying the broadcast.
Both Sides Battling for Top 4 Seed in A-10
Saint Louis blows into the Windy City on a 2-game skid, and a third could jeopardize the Billikens’ chances to grab a top 4 seed for the A-10 Tournament. They were the underdog at St. Joseph’s last Friday when the Billikens blew a 10-point lead in the first half and died at the end to allow the Hawks to more than double-up the 6-point spread.
Favored by a bucket at home against league leader George Mason a few days ago, Saint Louis rallied to force overtime but ultimately fell to the Patriots.
A win for Loyola would really boost the Ramblers’ chances to land a top 4 seed and bye into the A-10 quarterfinals. They spent the last two games as road favorites, falling 69-56 at Duquesne last Saturday before earning an 87-80 overtime win Tuesday at Richmond.
‘Under’ Cashes 3 of last 4 Meetings
The Ramblers won both meetings last season to take a 26-24 lead in the series. The Billikens had won the two matchups a year earlier when they first started to meet as A-10 opponents.
In the contest played at Gentile Arena, the Ramblers overcame a sluggish start to score a 79-62 decision to cover the 10-point home chalk, and I like Loyola to cover the NCAAB odds once again on Friday.
NCAAB Pick: Loyola Chicago -2.5 (-108) at Heritage Sports (visit our Heritage Sports Review)
UCLA Bruins vs. Indiana Hoosiers
Friday, February 14, 2025 – 08:00 PM ET at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall
Combined, they own 16 NCAA Championships – 11 of those in UCLA’s trophy case and 5 belonging to Indiana – and all but owned college basketball in the 1970s and 1980s.
Now the Bruins and Hoosiers prepare to meet for the first time as conference rivals, with UCLA hoping not to get skunked on its weeklong trip through the Midwest and Indiana looking for something, anything to smile about during what has been a trying season.
Bruins 3-4 ATS in B1G Roadies
Top sportsbooks closed the Bruins as 7-point underdogs three days ago at Illinois, and while they did cover the number in an 83-78 setback, it took a frantic push – plus a Fighting Illini collapse – to do it. UCLA trailed by 16 with 5 minutes left.
The loss ended a 7-game win streak for Mick Cronin’s club, and the flurry of late points also halted a 3-game run of ‘under’ winners for the Bruins.
Amid all of the rumors tied to head coach Mike Woodson leaving his post at the end of the season, Indiana went to Michigan State on Tuesday night dragging a 5-game losing streak, and a double-digit underdog to see that grow to six in a row.
The Hoosiers played one of their better games on the Big Ten schedule this year, and might have caught the Spartans looking past them. Malik Reneau and Oumar Ballo each registered double-doubles in the 71-67 upset, and the Hoosiers kept Spartans head coach Tom Izzo from breaking longtime Indiana coach Bobby Knight’s conference win mark.
All-Time Series Tied 6-6
The Bruins and Hoosiers were each trying to win another national title the last two times they met. The most recent was in the second round of the West Region in 2007 when 2nd-seed UCLA posted a 54-49 win that Indiana covered as a No. 7 seed.
It was the Hoosiers rolling over the Bruins to win the West Region of the 1992 Dance, cruising to a 106-79 victory. Indiana was the top seed in the West that year with UCLA as No. 2.
Indiana should be feeling pretty good about itself following the win in East Lansing earlier this week, but it’s not enough for me to back the Hoosiers. My college basketball pick will be on the Bruins to head back to LA with a 72-68 victory.
NCAAB Pick: UCLA -2 (-110) at Bookmaker
*The line and/or odds on picks in this article might have moved since the content was commissioned. For updated line movements, visit BMR’s free betting odds product.
