NCAA Basketball: 10 best bets to make on opening night of 2022-23 season

6. Akron (-4.5) vs South Dakota State

Due to the star power of the other teams in the MAC last season, Akron flew under the radar. But despite losing leading scorer Ali Ali, they return a trio of double-digit scorers, including Xavier Castaneda, Bryan Trimble, and Enrique Freeman. They’re one of the better defensive teams in the country and is a good matchup against a Summit League program that struggles against strong defenses.

The Jackrabbits also are moving on without stars Douglas Wilson and Baylor Scheierman, who each won a Conference Player of the Year Award. They do return several key pieces that’ll thrive in expanded roles, such as Zeke Mayo and Luke Appel. South Dakota State will be a good mid-major program once again but on opening night, the Zips, who have more chemistry for now, should have the edge.

5. La Salle (+15.5) vs Villanova

The Explorers are hoping to get back to being competitive this season and do have a couple of solid guards (Jhamir Brickus and Khalil Brantley), joined by Saint Peter’s transfers, Hassan and  Fousseyni Drame. To be clear, it’s not about La Salle being good but more of Villanova limping into this matchup.

The Wildcats already won’t have Justin Moore for this game but also five-star freshman, Cam Whitmore, who has been out since the preseason. Caleb Daniels, the top returning player from the roster, is playing with a mask after suffering a broken nose. And even with all of the injuries, the question as to who will run the offense in place of Collin Gillespie is also unknown as of now. With this being Kyle Neptune’s first game as head coach of Villanova and this being a “rivalry” game, look for La Salle to make a statement and put a scare into them.