The No. 11 West Virginia Mountaineers (11-4, 4-3 Big XII) host the Florida Gators (9-4, 6-3 SEC) Friday in the SEC/Big XII Challenge at the WVU Coliseum. The tip-off is set for 2 p.m. ET. Below, we analyze the Florida-West Virginia college basketball odds and lines, with picks and predictions.
Rankings courtesy of the Ferris Mowers Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports.
Florida at West Virginia: Odds, spread and lines
Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated at 10:35 a.m. ET.
- Money line: Florida +185 (bet $100 to win $185) | West Virginia -225 (bet $225 to win $100)
- Against the spread/ATS: Florida +5.5 (-115) | West Virginia -5.5 (-105)
- Over/Under: 147.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
Florida at West Virginia: Three things to know
- Florida has won three straight and four out of its past five (3-2 ATS), which includes a 26-point whooping on then-No. 11 Tennessee at home as 9-point underdogs. The Gators are propelled by their offense ranked 76th in offensive rating and 50th in true shooting percentage.
- The Mountaineers won and covered against conference rivals Kansas State Saturday and No. 10 Texas Tech Monday in their return to action following a two-week layoff due to COVID-19 issues. Before the hiatus, West Virginia lost a 72-70 nail-biter at home to vs. then-No. 4 Texas Jan. 9.
- This is a rare West Virginia-Florida as these two have only met twice since 2016 with the Gators and covering both games.
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Florida at West Virginia: Odds, lines, predictions and picks
Prediction
Florida 77, West Virginia 72
Money line (ML)
PASS with a lean on Florida (+185) because I’m going to take the Gators to cover and often I’ll sprinkle on an underdog’s money line if I’m taking them plus points.
Against the spread (ATS)
This is a good matchup for Florida’s offense because the Gators take a lot of shots inside the arc, and that’s where West Virginia’s defense struggles.
Florida is 31st in 2-point attempt rate and makes 66% of its shots at the rim, according to HoopsMath.com. While the Mountaineers’ opponents are shooting 50.8% on 2-pointers (ranked 228th) and, according to HoopsMath.com, connecting on 59.1% of shots at the rim (ranked 284th).
Finally, if you check out the market handle you’ll notice that more of the money is on Florida but more of the bets placed are on West Virginia, according to Pregame.com. Typically, you’d like to follow the money column because that’s considered the sharp side of the market.
TAKE FLORIDA +5.5 (-110) for 1 unit.
Over/Under (O/U)
I’m going to lean OVER 147.5 (-110) for a quarter-unit because both teams’ offenses are rated higher than its defenses. Also, there are some pro-Over trends to consider such as Florida’s last six road games going Over and West Virginia cashing an Over in four of its last five.
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