The UC Riverside Highlanders (19-10, 12-5 Big West) and Hawaii Rainbow Warriors (20-8, 11-5) meet Thursday at SimpliFi Arena at the Stan Sheriff Center in Honolulu. Tip-off is scheduled for 11:59 p.m. ET (ESPN+). Below, we analyze Tipico Sportsbook’s lines around the UC Riverside vs. Hawaii game odds, and make our expert college basketball picks, predictions and bets.
Riverside takes a trip to the islands with 3 consecutive wins and covers in tow. The Highlanders have been hot lately, but they lost 67-63 on their home floor Jan. 21 against the Rainbow Warriors, failing to cover as 2.5-point favorites as the Under cashed.
Hawaii has won and covered 2 in a row, and 4 of the past 5 games. The Rainbow Warriors haven’t won and covered 3 in a row since Dec. 11-24. The Under has cashed in 3 straight for Hawaii, too.
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UC Riverside at Hawaii odds
Provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 12:10 p.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Off the Board (OTB)
- Against the spread (ATS): UC Riverside +3.5 (-110) | Hawaii -3.5 (-110)
- Over/Under (O/U): 131.5 (O: -105 | U: -115)
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UC Riverside at Hawaii picks and predictions
Prediction
Hawaii 70, UC Riverside 67
Moneyline
The money line was Off the Board (OTB) at the time of publishing, but Hawaii wouldn’t be worth pursuing anyway in what should be a close conference contest.
AVOID.
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Against the spread
UC RIVERSIDE +3.5 (-110) is the lean, but play it ever so slightly.
The Highlanders are a solid 4-1 ATS in the past 5 games overall, while cashing in 6 of the previous 8 outings against teams with a winning overall record.
The Rainbow Warriors have failed to cover in the past 5 home games, while going 1-7 ATS in the past 8 after a straight-up win, and 1-6 ATS in the past 78 following a cover. Hawaii is also a dismal 2-6 ATS in the past 8 against winning teams.
Over/Under
OVER 131.5 (-105) might be the best play in this Big West battle.
The Over is 26-10 in the past 36 games overall for Riverside, while cashing in 4 of the past 5 outings on the road.
The Over is 4-1 in the past 5 games for Hawaii against teams with an overall winning percentage of .600 or more.
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