The Phil Knight Invitational tips off on Tuesday night as the BYU Cougars face off against the Oregon Ducks at the Moda Center in Portland.
This should be a great tilt between a pair of programs that made the NCAA Tournament last season with Oregon advancing all the way to the Sweet 16. College basketball betting lines have the Ducks installed as 4-point favorites with the Over/Under at 141.5.
Here are our best free BYU vs. Oregon picks and predictions for NCAA basketball action on Tuesday, November 16.
BYU vs Oregon odds
Odds via the Covers Line, an average comprised of odds from multiple sportsbooks.
The Ducks opened as 4.5-point favorites with the Over/Under at 141.5. Early money came in on BYU, moving the line to Oregon -4 while the total has remained steady. Use the live odds widget above to track any future line movements right up until tip-off and be sure to check out the full college basketball odds before placing your bets.
BYU vs Oregon predictions
Predictions made on 11/16/2021 at 10:30 a.m. ET.
Click on each prediction to jump to the full analysis.
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BYU vs Oregon game info
• Location: Moda Center, Portland, OR
• Date: Tuesday, November 16, 2021
• Tip-off: 10:00 p.m. ET
• TV: ESPN
BYU at Oregon betting preview
Injuries
BYU: Richard Harward C (Out).
Oregon: N'Faly Dante C (Out).
Find our latest NCAA basketball injury reports.
Betting trend to know
The Cougars are 5-21 ATS in their last 26 neutral site games as an underdog. Find more NCAA betting trends for BYU vs. Oregon.
BYU vs Oregon picks and predictions
Our predictions are compiled from the analysis of the spread and total and are indications of where we are leaning for this game.
Our best bet is the play that we like the most for this game, which we would actually put some of our bankroll behind.
Spread analysis
UCLA might be receiving the most hype in the Pac-12 this season, but don't expect Oregon to roll over after winning the last two conference tournaments, and making it until at least the Sweet 16 in four of the last five editions of March Madness. The Ducks have turned into a perennial contender under Dana Altman, and although they lost three starters from last year's squad they replaced them with a trio of transfers in De'Vion Harmon, Jacob Young, and Quincy Guerrier.
Oregon also returned seniors Will Richardson, who leads the team with 19 points per game on 54.5 percent shooting, and Eric Williams Jr. The Ducks cruised to a pair of easy victories over Texas Southern and SMU to begin the season and rank 15th in the country in offensive efficiency.
Playing second-fiddle to Gonzaga in the WCC is nothing to be embarrassed about and Mark Pope has led BYU to back-to-back seasons in the Top-20 of the KenPom rankings.
The Cougars are led by guard Alex Barcello and forward Caleb Lohner, who both landed on the All-WCC preseason team. BYU won its season opener against Cleveland State by a final score of 69-59 before grinding out a 66-60 victory over a tough San Diego State squad last Friday.
Similar to last year's squad, the Ducks are loaded with perimeter players but lack size and length down low with the 6-foot-7 inch Guerrier their biggest rotation player until center N'Faly Dante returns from injury. That said, the Cougars don't have the size to exploit that weakness with their own center Richard Harward out indefinitely with a cardiovascular issue.
Barcello is a dynamic scorer who led the team with 15.7 ppg last season and is putting up 20.5 ppg on 68.8 percent shooting so far this year. That said, no other Cougars player is averaging more than 9 ppg and the rest of the team is shooting a collective 36.4 percent from the field.
Oregon has an edge when it comes to scoring depth along with a more athletic lineup. That should be enough to get the win and cover.
Prediction: Oregon -4 (-110)
Over/Under analysis
It's one thing to shoot 39 percent from the field against a strong defensive squad like SDSU, but the Cougars also had a tough time putting points on Cleveland State in their season opener, shooting 44.7 percent from the field and just 26.3 percent from beyond the arc.
While Oregon's offense is built around guard play they aren't a team that flies up and down the court. The Ducks ranked 226th in the country in adjusted tempo last season and, albeit in a smaller sample size, this year rank outside the Top 300 in that category.
The Cougars are also a slower-paced team, ranking outside the Top 250 in adjusted tempo, and they're struggling to hit shots from deep, which was one of their strengths last season.
BYU's offense has been very reliant on getting to the charity stripe, averaging 25 free throw attempts per game (and converting at an 80 percent clip), but likely won't have that same success against a Ducks team that allows 16 FTA per game to opponents.
Prediction: Under 141.5 (-110)
Best bet
We mentioned that the Ducks have better depth, superior athletes, and have more guys who create their own shots. But another advantage for Oregon will be the supposedly neutral ground at the Moda Center.
BYU is just 5-21 ATS in its last 26 neutral site games as an underdog while Oregon is 14-5 ATS in its previous 19 contests on a neutral court. Not to mention that the crowd in Portland will likely make it feel more like a home atmosphere for the Ducks.
Pick: Oregon -4 (-110)
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Use our college basketball parlay calculator to create your own parlays and see their potential payouts.
