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The Harvard Crimson take on the Columbia Lions. Our college basketball odds series has our Harvard Columbia prediction and pick. Find out how to watch Harvard Columbia.
Ivy League basketball has been a roller-coaster this season. Yale and Penn started the season very poorly but then caught fire in late January and haven't stopped winning. Columbia beat Yale in one of the huge stunners in league play … and yet the Lions are sitting here in mid-February with that win being their only victory in conference play. Harvard was 3-3 through six Ivy League games but has absorbed a disastrous and generally unexpected four-game losing streak over the past few weeks.
Harvard and especially Columbia are both in huge trouble in the pursuit of a spot in the four-team Ivy League Tournament, the three-game playoff (two semifinals and a championship game) for the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. Yale and Princeton both lead the league at 7-3 through 10 games. Penn and Brown are tied for third at 6-4, filling out the third and fourth spots in the Ivy League Tournament if the regular season ended today. Cornell and Dartmouth are next at 5-5, both in the hunt but needing to make up ground.
It's really hard to say that Havard, at 3-7, is in the hunt, but we can all agree that if the Crimson do want to make a final desperate run at a spot in the four-team tournament, the Crimson have zero margin for error. Every remaining game is a must-win, and the Crimson need help as well. If they lose here to Columbia, they are toast.
Here are the Harvard-Columbia college basketball odds, courtesy of FanDuel:
College Basketball Odds: Harvard-Columbia Odds
Harvard Crimson: -9.5 (-118)
Columbia Lions: +9.5 (-104)
Over: 136.5 (-110)
Under: 136.5 (-110)
How To Watch Harvard vs. Columbia
TV: ESPN+
Stream: ESPN+
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Time: 7:00 p.m. ET, 4:00 p.m. PT
*Watch Harvard-Columbia LIVE with fuboTV (Click for free trial)*
Why Harvard Could Cover The Spread
The best reason to think that Harvard will cover the spread is that Columbia has been playing terribly. The Lions have lost each of their last five games, and beyond that, the Lions have generally been getting pummeled in their recent outings. Columbia's last five losses have all been by nine points or more, and three of those five losses have been by 12 points or more. It's not as though Columbia is playing teams especially closely, so that's why you're seeing a 9.5-point spread against a Harvard team which is on a big losing streak of its own. Harvard might have a lot of problems, but the Crimson are in far better shape than Columbia is right now. It's all relative and comparative. Harvard can and frankly should blow the doors off Columbia.
Why Columbia Could Cover The Spread
The Lions have not been playing well — no one can say they have been performing up to expectations in recent weeks — but Harvard is a mess. The Crimson have lost four consecutive games, and three of those four losses have been by eight points or more. It's not as though Harvard is losing by one basket or taking opponents into overtime. Nope. The Crimson are getting their clocks cleaned, and yet they are favored by nearly 10 points in a road game? That doesn't make a whole lot of sense. Columbia can lose by nine points to a cratering Harvard side and still cover? That seems like a great opening for a betting play.
Final Harvard-Columbia Prediction & Pick
If you have any experience at all in the world of sports betting, you should be generally aware by now that you shouldn't trust a bad team to take care of your wagered money. You shouldn't trust either Harvard or Columbia to cover. Just pass on this one.
Final Harvard-Columbia Prediction & Pick: Columbia +9.5
