It’s time to continue our College Basketball odds series with a Nevada-Colorado State prediction and pick. Find out how to watch Nevada-Colorado State.
The Colorado State Rams are on the outside looking in. They simply haven’t beaten NCAA Tournament-quality teams this season. The Rams are beating the lower half of the Mountain West, but beating Wyoming, Air Force, and Fresno State is not what gets a team into the NCAA Tournament. It’s part of the deal, but not the whole plan. CSU has fallen short against Utah State and New Mexico, the two Mountain West locks. It did beat San Diego State, but the Aztecs are a bubble team rather than a 5-seed-quality team which represents a substantial resume-boosting result. Colorado State has also suffered from the fact that Boise State and Nevada, two teams which in the past have been solid NCAA Tournament teams, are both well outside the cut line this season. Beating Nevada here on Tuesday night and beating Boise State later in the regular season would not improve Colorado State’s portfolio to the same extent it would have done in past years. The Rams simply had to be several games better against this schedule than they have been, and they’re not. CSU would need to win every game it plays from now through the Mountain West Tournament semifinals to have any slight chance at an at-large bid. Basically, CSU has to be thinking automatic bid at the MWC Tournament. This regular season did not go the way the Rams needed or wanted.
Here are the Nevada-Colorado State College Basketball Odds, courtesy of FanDuel
College Basketball Odds: Nevada-Colorado State Odds
Nevada: +3.5 (-102)
Moneyline: +146
Colorado State: -3.5 (-120)
Moneyline: -176
Over: 137.5 (-110)
Under: 137.5 (-110)
How to Watch Nevada vs Colorado State
Time: 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT
TV: Mountain West Network
*Watch college basketball LIVE with fuboTV (Get Access | Save $30)*
Why Nevada Will Cover The Spread/Win
Colorado State is a failed team in terms of getting an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Rams might therefore be deflated and unable to play with their normal verve and enthusiasm at home. The Rams know the score here. They know their at-large chances are slim to none. They know that March is when they need to turn on the jets at their conference tournament. Winning three games in three days is how CSU will go to the Big Dance. Colorado State might therefore engage in energy conservation in this game and in the next few weeks, knowing that its moment of truth is not right now, but in three weeks. That will enable Nevada — which lost at home to CSU right after Christmas — to gain revenge here at the end of its own disappointing season.
Why Colorado State Will Cover The Spread/Win
Colorado State is playing at home, and it has been taking care of business at home against inferior teams in the Mountain West this season. Colorado State is 10-4 in Mountain West play, losing twice to league leader and likely conference champion New Mexico, plus once to second-place Utah State and once to the San Diego State team which is tied with the Rams for third place. CSU has not tripped up against the lower half of the MWC. The reason the Rams aren’t going to the NCAA Tournament, barring a big run in the Mountain West Tournament, is that they haven’t beaten enough good teams. They have swung and missed against the big boys, in their conference and beyond (Ole Miss, VCU). Against the Nevadas of the world, they have been fine. They won in Reno against the Wolf Pack nearly two months ago. There’s no reason they can’t or shouldn’t do so again.
Final Nevada-Colorado State Prediction & Pick
Colorado State is a better team, playing at home. The spread is small. Don’t overcomplicate it. Go with CSU.
Final Nevada-Colorado State Prediction & Pick: Colorado State -3.5
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