3 College Basketball Prop Bets for Monday 1/29/24

College basketball season is in full swing, and FanDuel Sportsbook offers prop bets for key games to dive deeper in the action.

For bettors, numberFire's Matchup Heat Map helps identify favorable game environments, while KenPom and Sports-Reference offer a wide range of team-level statistics. Then, we can turn to Bart Torvik and RealGM for advanced player stats and splits.

Let's check out FanDuel Sportsbook's college basketball odds and dive into our wealth of statistical data to find today's best prop bets.

Please note lines are subject to change throughout the day after this article is published.

College Basketball Prop Bets

No. 12 Duke at Virginia Tech

Kyle Filipowski Over 16.5 Points (-128)

Duke big man Kyle Filipowski struggled in Duke's most recent outing, scoring just nine points while missing six of his eight shot attempts.

Expect a bounce-back effort tonight.

That was just the third time Filipowski was held under 10 points this season, but he averaged 23 points per game in their four previous contests. On the season, Duke's leading scorer averages 17.7 points per game, shooting 50% from the floor, 38% from three, and 67% from the free-throw line.

Though he's averaging 16.5 points per game in conference play, he's trending up. After failing to crack 13 points in their first three, Filipowski went for at least 17 in four of the last five.

On paper, tonight's bout with Virginia Tech is a good matchup for him. He torched the Hokies for 29 points when the Blue Devils visited Blacksburg last year, and their interior defense isn't much better this season.

Among 15 ACC teams, Virginia Tech ranks 10th in adjusted defensive efficiency and has given up the fourth-highest field goal percentage at the rim, per Bart Torvik. They've let up the fourth-highest rate of close twos in the conference, and they're outside the top 125 nationally in overall two-point field goal percentage allowed.

That bodes well for Filipowski, as 59% of his shot attempts come at the rim. He's shooting 65% on such attempts.

He'd hardly be the first big man to have success against the Hokies. In their nine conference games, six different big men have scored at least 15 points against Virginia Tech. Starting center Lynn Kidd ranks 35th of 50 qualified ACC big men in EvanMiya's Defensive Bayesian Performance Rating (DBPR), so Filipowski should have the advantage here.

It's not like we're expecting a career performance, either, as Filipowski scored at least 17 points in 11 of his 19 games. With an advantageous matchup on deck, he's well-positioned to do so for the 12th time -- so I'll take Kyle Filipowski Over 16.5 points (-128).

Hunter Cattoor To Make 3+ Threes (+114)

On the opposite side, I'm expecting Virginia Tech to get plenty of open looks from beyond the arc.

Duke ranks outside the top 200 nationally in three-point field goal percentage allowed (34%) and 167th in three-point rate allowed. They've surrendered double-digit triples in two of their last four games; that's something Hunter Cattoor and the Hokies should take full advantage of.

Cattoor averages 13.7 points and 2.5 threes per game. He shot over 40% from deep in all five of his collegiate seasons and is on pace to finish in the ACC's top 10 in made threes for the third straight year.

The senior guard has been lights-out in conference play, too. In his six healthy ACC games, Cattoor nailed at least three triples four times, including each of the last three.

It doesn't hurt that he's hit this mark in two of four matchups with Duke over the last two seasons. That includes a five-three performance when they hosted the Blue Devils last season and a seven-three outing in the 2022 ACC Championship game.

Duke's struggles to guard the three make me confident in taking Hunter Cattoor To Make 3+ Threes (+114). Considering his prior performances against them, I'm interested in Hunter Cattoor To Make 4+ Threes (+270), too.

No. 4 Houston at Texas

Max Abmas Under 15.5 Points (-110)

Fourth-ranked Houston visits Texas tonight -- that does not bode well for the Longhorns' Max Abmas.

The NCAA's 14th all-time leading scorer ranks third in the Big 12 with 17.6 points per game. He's been highly efficient, too, shooting 45% overall and 41% from three.

However, Abmas has begun to cool off in conference play. He's been held under 40% shooting in three of his last four games, failing to reach 16 points in each of those three cold nights.

Better days are on the horizon, but I don't like his chances to bounce back against Houston.

The Cougars lead all 362 Division I programs in KenPom's adjusted defensive efficiency. Barring a total collapse, this will be their fourth consecutive top-10 finish in adjusted defense. They have been historically great on that end of the floor, allowing the fewest points per game (51.9) in the country.

They've kept that up in conference play where they allowed just 56.6 points per game and a measly 36% opponent field goal percentage. Big 12 guards, in particular, have struggled against Houston. Only two opposing guards reached 15 points against them while six of seven opposing point guards were held to single digits.

Houston has contained some of the best scorers in the conference, too. Texas Tech's Pop Isaacs and TCU's Emmanual Miller -- first and fifth in scoring -- both failed to notch 14 points against the Cougars.

Houston has proven itself to be the best defensive team in the country, and they've shut down several high-level scorers already. Considering his recent cold spell and Texas' measly implied total (63), I'll take Max Abmas Under 15.5 points (-110) in what should be a low-scoring affair.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.