NCAA Basketball: Picks for Day 22 of the 2024-25 season

Yesterday was a lot of fun. It was a fantastic close to a great first week of Feast Week. The schedule yesterday had some games that were perfect for an upset, and they were delivered. Kennesaw State beat Rutgers on their home court. The Owls have now beaten their first top-25 team in program history, and they look like a legitimate contender in Conference USA. Georgia beat St. John’s in the Bahamas. Liberty beat Kanas State to advance to the Paradise Jam championship game. Bradley won the Myrtle Beach Invitational. Drake stays undefeated as they won the Charleston Classic and beat Miami, Florida Atlantic, and Vanderbilt on their way to the title. The Bulldogs are awfully good.

Yesterday I went 35-17 in my picks, which brings my 21-day total to 711-216. Everyone will say that Feast Week truly starts today because that is when the big-time tournaments start. That isn’t fair to the other little tournaments, but this week is going to be awesome. The Sunshine Slam, Fort Myers Tip-Off, Gulf Coast Showcase, Maui Invitational, Coke Classic, Trojan Turkey Tipoff, Jaguar Classic, and Ball Dawgs Classic all begin today. The Paradise Jam will crown a champion, and the Cayman Islands Classic and the Stew Morrill Classic will continue. Today is just a primer for the rest of the week, but The Maui Invitational will be a must-watch. Picks for day 22, November 25, 2024, are below.

Radford over Chicago State

Hampton over Duquesne

Siena over Miami Ohio

Eastern Kentucky over Ball State

Howard over UMBC

UAB over Louisiana

Fort Wayne over Drexel

Boise State over South Dakota State

Jacksonville over Mercer

UConn over Memphis

Illinois State over George Washington

Louisiana Tech over Southern Illinois

Alabama A&M over IU Indy

Northridge over Denver

Penn State over Fordham

High Point over Old Dominion

Michigan State over Colorado

Kansas State over Longwood

UMass Lowell over Merrimack

Michigan over Virginia Tech

Winthrop over Long Island

Clemson over San Francisco

Chattanooga over Tennessee State

Stonehill over East Texas A&M

Columbia over New Hampshire

Buffalo over North Carolina A&T

Cornell over Iona

Boston College over Missouri State

UT Rio Grande Valley over Le Moyne

Montana over Utah Tech

Arkansas over Maryland Eastern Shore

McNeese over Liberty

Indiana State over Southern Indiana

North Texas over Oregon State

Saint Louis over Quinnipiac

Troy over UTSA

South Alabama over Incarnate Word

Eastern Michigan over Houston Christian

Ohio State over Green Bay

Minnesota over Central Michigan

UTEP over San Jose State

South Carolina over Xavier

Iowa State over Auburn

Illinois over Little Rock

Abilene Christian over Southern Mississippi

UC Davis over Norfolk State

UNC Greensboro over Long Beach State

North Carolina over Dayton

That is a jam-packed Monday, and the day's game is between Auburn and Iowa State in Maui. Those are two top 5 teams who both play the same style of basketball. Iowa State has one of the best defenses in the country. They also have an extremely efficient offense. Auburn is blowing people out because they are shooting 56% from the floor as a team and don’t allow much on the defensive end. That game is going to be one of the best of the year. Don’t sleep on Dayton over North Carolina in Maui. The Flyers are capable. Liberty and McNeese for the Paradise Jam Championship is the best mid-major game of the day. It has two players who can both carry a team and win games. Sincere Parker for McNeese and Kaden Metheny for Liberty. Enjoy the hoops.