The Colorado Buffaloes (2-1) and UMass Minutemen (1-1) meet Thursday in a 1st-round game of the 8-team Myrtle Beach Invitational in Conway, S.C. The contest at the HTC Center will tip off at 1:30 p.m. ET (ESPNU). Below, we analyze Tipico Sportsbook’s lines around the Colorado vs. UMass odds, and make our expert college basketball picks, predictions and bets.
Colorado heads into this 4-day tournament off a monster win over No. 17 Tennessee Sunday. The underdog Buffaloes (+15) held the Volunteers to a 25.4% mark from the floor in a 78-66 triumph. The win was a bounce-back from an 83-74 Friday loss at Grambling.
UMass won its opener Nov. 7 but then dropped a 67-55 decision to Towson last Thursday. The Minutemen were favored by 3 in the loss to Towson, but they were outshot 53.2% to 34.5%. They have not played since.
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Colorado vs. UMass odds
Provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Thursday at 12:11 a.m. ET.
- Moneyline: Off the board
- Against the spread (ATS): Colorado -6.5 (-105) | UMass +6.5 (-125)
- Over/Under (O/U): 147.5 (O: -117 | U: -113)
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Colorado vs. UMass picks and predictions
Prediction
Colorado 78, UMass 71
Moneyline
Not available.
Against the spread
It seems like the Grambling loss was a wake-up call for a solid Buffs team that returns much of its rotation from a year ago (when Colorado went 21-12). Yes, Sunday’s win over the Vols was buoyed by terrible UT shooting. And yes, UMass had more than a few misfires of its own in the loss to Towson.
But the Buffaloes have the defense to pace a 2- to 4-score win on Thursday. Peg Colorado as a better option to get to the line more often as well, and the layoff and neutral floor could create some shooting woes for the Minutemen.
It’s a bit of a hold-my-nose on this price — a partial-unit play is the suggestion — but COLORADO -6.5 (-105).
Over/Under
These are 2 fast squads, but the early start on the neutral floor makes a high-140s total a tough 1 to bank as inaccurate. PASS.
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