Every Monday, numerous polls are released that give us an indication of who the best college basketball teams in the nation are. These polls are built through votes and opinions based on straight-up results, but what about a top 25 tailored toward bettors?
Every week, we compile a top-25 list with the bettor in mind. Nothing matters but cold hard facts with the numbers to back them up. For any team to be ranked, it must have at least 10 games with a listed spread. Teams are ranked based on cover percentage and in case of a tie, the number of covers will be used as a tiebreaker.
Here’s the top 25 ATS teams in college basketball:
February 27, 2018
- Nebraska Cornhuskers: 22-7 ATS
- Nebraska enters the Big Ten conference tournament as the best bet in the nation. Their defensive style is not always the prettiest to watch but the Cornhuskers get the luxury of being often underappreciated playing in the same conference as Michigan State, Purdue and Ohio State.
- Virginia Cavaliers: 18-7 ATS
- Virginia’s defense-first mentality may give bettors pause but the Cavaliers have proven that it should not matter. They have been especially deadly on the road where they get spotted fewer points from oddsmakers, as Tony Bennett’s team is 9-1 ATS away from Charlottesville.
- UNC Greensboro Spartans: 17-7 ATS
- Thanks to a recent slump from East Tennessee State, UNC Greensboro has climbed to the top of the Southern. The Spartans’ deliberate defense has them holding opponents to just 63.3 ppg (6th in the nation) and 21.3 field goals per game (3rd).
- William & Mary Tribe: 17-7 ATS
- If you didn’t watch William & Mary play this season, you missed out on a lot of shootouts. The team averaged 85.6 ppg while allowing 82.1 and also eclipsed 100 points on four occasions. William & Mary is locked into a CAA quarterfinals matchup with Towson – a team the Tribe are 0-2 SU and ATS against this season.
- Auburn Tigers: 19-8 ATS
- Auburn has slowed down on the court and at the betting window, going just 3-3 SU and ATS in its six games prior to this writing. The once-explosive offense has been slowing down noticeably during that span, averaging 77.5 points. That is nearly seven points less than the Tigers’ season average.
- Loyola-Chicago Ramblers: 18-8 ATS
- Loyola-Chicago enters Arch Madness as the No. 1 seed. Expect the Ramblers to become a popular bracket buster – assuming they rightfully win the MVC – thanks to their lengthy winning streak and efficient style of play. The team is a fantastic 11-3 ATS in games not played at The Joe.
- Xavier Musketeers: 20-9 ATS
- Xavier has been a roller-coaster of a bet this season with lengthy periods of ATS success followed by failure. The Musketeers are on the upswing, though, as they have gone 7-2 ATS in their past nine outings. Xavier’s final two games of the regular season come against Providence and DePaul, two teams the Musketeers have yet to cover against this season.
- Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns: 15-7 ATS
- Outside of an impressive 10-game ATS streak through the entirety of January, Louisiana-Lafayette has actually been pretty mediocre for bettors. The Ragin’ Cajuns are just 3-3 ATS in their last six games thanks to several large spreads. Frank Bartley IV and company have already clinched the Sun Belt regular-season crown and will be the team to beat in the conference tourney.
- South Alabama Jaguars: 17-8 ATS
- The Jaguars’ lack of offense has caught up to them with South Alabama dropping its last three games while covering just once. The young squad doesn’t have much to play for with every team in the Sun Belt making the conference tournament but the Jaguars need to right the ship or they will get bounced early.
- Western Kentucky Hilltoppers: 18-9 ATS
- Western Kentucky has finally started to cover the big spreads it has been facing, as the Hilltoppers are 4-0 ATS in their last four despite facing an average line of -9.5. Their game this Thursday against Middle Tennessee will likely determine who gets the top seed in the C-USA tournament.
- Miami Redhawks: 18-9 ATS
- The definition of a team that is good enough to compete but not good enough to win. Though this may not be great SU, it makes Miami a great bet. The RedHawks are 15-6 ATS as underdogs thanks to their tenacity.
- South Dakota State Jackrabbits: 16-8-1 ATS
- There is no doubt that South Dakota State is the team to beat in the Summit League tournament. The Jackrabbits are 13-1 SU with the one loss coming on the road against their in-state rivals. Until someone can outscore them or slow down their potent offense, South Dakota State will continue to cruise on the court and at the betting window.
- UC Santa Barbara Gauchos: 16-8-1 ATS
- UC Santa Barbara is currently in a battle for the top spot in the Big West that features four teams within 1.5 games of the conference crown. Luckily for the Gauchos, they get to play a couple of lower-tier teams in Long Beach State and Cal Poly to close out the regular season. UC Santa Barbara easily beat Long Beach in their first meeting, while they will have revenge on their minds against Cal Poly, who upset the Gauchos in January.
- Cal State Fullerton Titans: 14-7-1 ATS
- Cal State Fullerton is one of the four teams battling for the Big West title in the last week of the season. The Titans are a late entrant to the race with the team going 4-1 SU and ATS in its last five games. It’s hard to see that trend ending with Kyle Allman playing his best basketball of the season recently for Cal State Fullerton.
- Villanova Wildcats: 19-10 ATS
- Just how impressive is Villanova’s ATS record? The Wildcats are covering at a 65.5 percent rate despite facing an average closing spread of -15.0. That being said, ’Nova is just 3-3 SU and ATS in its last six games and could be hitting a bit of a wall.
- Canisius Golden Griffins: 17-9-3 ATS
- Canisius closed out the regular season strong and enters the MAAC tourney as the best bet. We know that Jermaine Crumpton and Isaiah Reese are going to score but the Golden Griffins need secondary scoring if they want to beat Rider.
- Saint Louis Billikens: 17-9 ATS
- A late-season surge has seen Saint Louis go from cellar-dwellers to legit threats in the A-10. The Billikens are 6-2 SU and 7-1 ATS in their last eight games thanks to their stellar defense. However, to be blunt, the offense is downright awful and could be in trouble once the conference tourney rolls around.
- Northern Colorado Bears: 17-9 ATS
- Northern Colorado hangs around the rankings thanks to an early-season span that saw it cover in 10 straight games. Since then, the Bears are 7-7 ATS thanks to an inconsistent offense. When the Bears should win, they win big, but when they are dogs, they rarely hang around.
- Montana Grizzlies: 17-9 ATS
- Montana is in a rut for bettors despite its ranking on this list. The Grizzlies are just 2-4 ATS in their last six games thanks to a late-season offensive slump. Montana has already clinched at least a share of the Big Sky title, so the next two games will be spent trying to get things rolling again.
- Evansville Purple Aces: 17-9-1 ATS
- Evansville simply couldn’t win close games but the Purple Aces were typically good enough to hang around. They open the MVC tournament against Northern Iowa – a game I recommend bettors (and fans of offense) avoid.
- Rider Broncs: 17-9 ATS
- Five of Rider’s top six most used players are underclassmen and though it took some time to learn how to play together, the Broncs are crushing it now. The MAAC tourney seems like a dead heat between Rider and Canisius, who split the season series with both games decided by one point.
- North Texas Mean Green: 15-8 ATS
- A solid, yet unspectacular conference record likely has bettors overlooking North Texas. However, the Mean Green are a ridiculous 11-4 ATS on the road and 13-4 as underdogs. The sophomore guard tandem of Roosevelt Smart and Ryan Woolridge might be the best pairing in college basketball you haven’t heard of.
- Duke Blue Devils: 18-10 ATS
- The Blue Devils have come out of left field to cover in five of their last six games. And Duke has gotten it done – shockingly – thanks to its defense. The Blue Devils have held each of their past six opponents to under 70 points. If they can look like that against UNC on Saturday, then Duke becomes one of the best bets in the Madness.
- Furman Paladins: 16-9
- Furman got red-hot for bettors at the end of the regular season, rattling off six-consecutive ATS victories. DUring that span, the Paladins held opponents to 55 or fewer points on four occasions while scoring at least 75 in every instance.
- Tennessee Volunteers: 16-9-1 ATS
- Keeping an eye on Tennessee entering the SEC tournament will be key, as the Vols are 6-6 ATS in Knoxville while going 10-3-1 ATS everywhere else.
