The Northern Kentucky Norse (17-11, 12-5 Horizon) and Cleveland State Vikings (17-11, 12-5) tote matching records into their Sunday Horizon League matinee. Tip from Wolstein Center is at 3 p.m. ET (ESPN+). Below, we analyze Tipico Sportsbook’s lines around the Northern Kentucky vs. Cleveland Stateodds, and make our expert college basketball picks, predictions and bets.
Northern Kentucky had a stretch of 4 straight wins from Jan. 14-26, a stretch that included a 57-56 victory over the Vikings on Jan. 19. The Norse lost 3 of their next 4, but they have rallied with back-to-back wins since. The most recent of those was a 63-50 triumph at Purdue Fort Wayne Friday.
Cleveland State also won Friday. The Vikings defeated Wright State 85-68 to easily cover as 2-point favorites. CSU has now won back-to-back games against the spread (ATS) after losing 4 straight ATS from Jan. 29-Feb. 10.
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Northern Kentucky at Cleveland State odds
Provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 10:20 a.m. ET.
- Moneyline: Northern Kentucky +110 (bet $100 to win $110) | Cleveland State -140 (bet $140 to win $100)
- Against the spread (ATS): Northern Kentucky +2.5 (-115) | Cleveland State -2.5 (-105)
- Over/Under (O/U): 128.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
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Northern Kentucky at Cleveland State picks and predictions
Prediction
Cleveland State 68, Northern Kentucky 67
Moneyline
NKU’s Jan. 19 win over CSU was on a buzzer-beater, but the Norse led that game by 2-5 points throughout much of the 2nd half despite uncharacteristically turning the ball over 20 times.
Both teams log a lot of inconsistent efforts despite winning at a decent clip. A little more return would make the visitors worth a play here. PASS, but if an NKU +115 becomes available, that’s a number worth a partial-unity play.
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Against the spread
NORTHERN KENTUCKY +2.5 (-115) is worth partial-unit action (full-fledged at -110 or better).
NKU has the more efficient defense, and the Norse have been knocking down their shots from distance lately, hitting 36 triples over their last 3 games.
Over/Under
The Over is 7-1 in CSU’s last 8 overall.
These are 2 bottom-third teams as far as pace goes, but the zig against that zag is NKU’s perimeter shooting and some lean on both offenses getting things going their way in meeting No. 2.
BACK THE OVER 128.5 (-110).
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