{"id":608274,"date":"2026-02-17T16:13:25","date_gmt":"2026-02-17T16:13:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/608274\/"},"modified":"2026-02-17T16:13:25","modified_gmt":"2026-02-17T16:13:25","slug":"college-basketball-betting-picks-today-best-bets-for-tuesday-february-17-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/608274\/","title":{"rendered":"College Basketball Betting Picks Today: Best Bets for Tuesday, February 17, 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tuesday night rarely lets us down this time of year, and it once again delivers what should be a thrilling college hoops slate. Going for my seventh straight profitable day, having won 15 of my last 18 picks, I present my selections for Tuesday evening.<\/p>\n

Top College Basketball Best Bets for Today<\/p>\n

For up-to-the-minute updates on injuries, player performance and the transfer portal, head RotoWire’s latest college basketball news<\/a> page or follow @RotoWireCBB<\/a> on X.<\/p>\n

Michigan \"Michigan\"\/ at Purdue \"Purdue\"\/<\/p>\n

As many college hoops fans are well aware, this matchup features two of the top offensive teams in the nation.<\/p>\n

Michigan’s offense boasts the fourth-highest adjusted efficiency rating, the 24th-highest offensive rebounding percentage, and the second-highest two-point field goal percentage, at 63 percent. The Wolverines also also draw fouls (66th in free-throw attempt rate) and drain threes, making 35 percent, giving them the seventh-highest effective field goal percentage nationally.<\/p>\n

Purdue’s defense has played at a relatively high level, ranked 19th in adjusted efficiency, though it’s somewhat vulnerable in the paint, allowing Big Ten opponents to make 55 percent of their two-point attempts, 13th in the conference. At the same time, Michigan’s unrelenting offense has made 62 percent of two-point attempts against league opponents, the best mark, naturally, so it’s hard to imagine Purdue getting many stops without generating takeaways, which is their likely key to victory.<\/p>\n

At the other end of the court, Purdue’s offense, which ranks second in adjusted efficiency, is tasked with overcoming the best defense in the nation. The Boilermakers appear as well-equipped as any team could be that hopes to take down the vaunted Michigan defense. The Boilermakers rank among the top 40 teams in effective field goal percentage, turnovers, and offensive rebounding. It has also made 59 percent of two-point attempts (19th) and 38 percent of three-point attempts (23rd), giving them a well-rounded attack.\u00a0<\/p>\n

All things considered, I like our odds of seeing a high-scoring game. Michigan pushes the tempo as much as any team in the country, ranking seventh in average offensive possession length. The last time Purdue played a team ranked in the top 10 in that category was in mid-November, when it defeated Alabama 87-80.<\/p>\n

For these reasons, I’m going with the over.<\/p>\n

College Basketball Best Bet: Over 156.5<\/p>\n

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Louisville \"Louisville\"\/ at SMU \"SMU\"\/<\/p>\n

The biggest liability in this game is SMU’s defense. It ranks 96th in adjusted efficiency and 13th among ACC teams during the conference season. The Mustangs are particularly\u00a0vulnerable in the paint, which is the last thing you want to be when facing Louisville.\u00a0<\/p>\n

SMU’s defense ranks 208th in defensive rebounding percentage and is allowing conference opponents\u00a0to make 55 percent of two-point attempts, 14th in the ACC. In contrast, Louisville\u00a0has one of the most potent offenses nationally, ranking 12th in adjusted efficiency, and it’s particularly strong in the paint. The Cardinals are making 60 percent of shots inside the arc (eighth) and have hardly seen a drop off going against league competition, making 59 percent, the second-best mark in the ACC.\u00a0Even with its elite numbers inside the arc, the Cardinals do just as st just as much damage from the perimeter, making almost 36 percent of three-pointers while attempting them at the fourth-highest clip nationally. Add it all up, and Louisville has the 20th-highest effective field goal percentage, miles ahead of SMU’s defense, which ranks 160th in effective field goal percentage allowed.<\/p>\n

In the other direction, the Mustangs have played at a much higher level, ranking 16th in adjusted efficiency. The only problem is that the Cardinals are essentially just as good defensively, ranking 27th in adjusted efficiency. The numbers are similarly close in many other key categories. Since the conference season began, SMU’s offense and Louisville’s\u00a0defense both rank fourth in rebounding and among the top four in efficiency. I should note, however, that Louisville is holding conference opponents to 47 percent on shots inside the arc, the third-best in the league. SMU is making 53 percent of two-point attempts against ACC opponents, eighth in the league, so it seems the Mustangs might need to find extra points on the perimeter in order to win on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

Overall, Louisville is better both offensively and defensively. Perhaps SMU gets an extra boost from being at home, but my money’s on the better team emerging victorious. I’m taking the Cardinals in this one.<\/p>\n

College Basketball Best Bet: Louisville -3.5<\/p>\n

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Georgia \"Georgia\"\/ at Kentucky \"Kentucky\"\/<\/p>\n

The Bulldogs are in a free fall, having lost five of their last six games, and it’s easy to see why. They get destroyed on the glass, and they struggle to score from the perimeter, despite making an effort to do so.<\/p>\n

Georgia’s defense is the weakest\u00a0component of this matchup, ranking among the five worst SEC teams during league play in efficiency, effective field goal percentage allowed, and two-point field goal percentage allowed (55 percent). Its worst trait of all, however, is its inability to box out. The Bulldogs rank 339th in defensive rebounding percentage, including the worst mark against SEC teams.<\/p>\n

Kentucky’s offense is well-equipped to take full advantage of these deficiencies. It ranks among the top nine SEC teams in efficiency, effective field goal percentage, and offensive rebounding. The Wildcats also boast the three-point make percentage during league play, having knocked down 36 percent.<\/p>\n

At the other end of the court, Georgia’s offense has played at a sub-par level in recent weeks. During the conference season, the Bulldogs’ offense ranks 11th or lower among SEC teams in efficiency, free-throw attempt rate allowed, and three-point make percentage (31 percent). The latter has particularly stifled offensive production, as the Bulldogs are hoisting three-pointers at the fifth-highest rate in the SEC despite limited success.<\/p>\n

The Wildcats have played respectable defense overall, ranking 33rd in adjusted efficiency and 43rd in effective field goal percentage allowed.<\/p>\n

Given the better offensive attack and a sturdy defense, I’m betting Kentucky will pull away in the second half. I’m laying the points with the Wildcats.<\/p>\n

College Basketball Best Bet: Kentucky -6.5<\/p>\n

Check out BetMGM Sportsbook to bet on <\/a>National Championship Odds<\/a>, and use this BetMGM Bonus Code<\/a> for a great welcome offer.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Tuesday College Basketball Best Bets:<\/p>\n

Here’s a recap of my best college basketball bets for Tuesday:<\/p>\n

Michigan at Purdue – Over 156.5Louisville -3.5Kentucky -6.5<\/p>\n

For up-to-date information on the latest\u00a0college basketball betting<\/a>\u00a0odds and props from multiple sources, check out the\u00a0college basketball odds<\/a>\u00a0page on RotoWire.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Tuesday night rarely lets us down this time of year, and it once again delivers what should be…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":477136,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3723],"tags":[7,217,80042,231,772,1544],"class_list":{"0":"post-608274","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-ncaa-basketball","8":"tag-basketball","9":"tag-college-basketball","10":"tag-minor-league-stats","11":"tag-ncaa","12":"tag-ncaa-basketball","13":"tag-ncaab"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/116086860924802245","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/608274","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=608274"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/608274\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/477136"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=608274"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=608274"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=608274"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}