
Colgate vs Bucknell Prediction 1/20/25 College Basketball Picks Today
Bucknell (8-11) vs. Colgate (8-11)
January 20, 2025 7:00 pm EDT
The Line: Colgate -6.5 ; Over/Under: 134.5
(Get latest betting odds)
The Bucknell Bison and the Colgate Raiders meet Monday in college basketball action from Cotterell Court. Here’s a Colgate vs Bucknell prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Colgate vs Bucknell pick.
Bucknell Bison Betting Preview
Bucknell had a lengthy losing streak (against some tough competition, granted) in late November through early January, but otherwise they haven’t played too badly overall. The Bison opened on a 4-2 run with wins over Delaware, Southern Indiana, Richmond and NJIT among losses to Kentucky and Mount St. Mary’s. The losing streak began after that, with games versus Rider, Maryland, Siena, St. Bonaventure, Radford, Gonzaga, Syracuse and Lehigh in succession. Bucknell shook off the skid with a 3-1 run in the next quartet though, losing to only American University among wins otherwise versus Colgate, Lafayette and Holy Cross for a 7-11 overall record through the first 18 games of the year.
In the Saturday matchup with Navy, Bucknell was outscored 36-27 in the first half. The Bison woke up after the break however, notching a 46-33 run for a 73-69 win in the end. Leading the team in scoring was Noah Williamson with 25 points, eight rebounds and one assist. Josh Bascoe was also in double-figures with 18 points, seven assists and four boards.
Colgate Raiders Betting Preview
Over on the Colgate side, they got off to a really tough run this year. The Raiders have gotten much better lately however, and their record doesn’t look nearly as bad. Colgate kicked things off with a 2-9 run over the first 11 games with wins over only SUNY-Canton and UNC Wilmington. Otherwise it was losses to Drexel, Syracuse, NC State, Harvard, App State, Sam Houston, Cornell, Northeastern and Kentucky in that time. Colgate posted a 5-2 run over the next seven games with losses to Iona and Bucknell alongside wins over Vermont, Army, Lehigh, Boston University and Navy. The result was a 7-11 overall run through the first 18 games of the season for the Raiders.
On Saturday matched up against Lafayette, the Raiders got off to a great start, going into the locker room up 51-30. Colgate kept it going on a 39-37 run the rest of the way and eventually won 90-67. Leading the team in scoring was Nicolas Louis-Jacques with 21 points, two rebounds and two assists. Jeff Woodward put up 17 points, eight boards and five assists in 25 minutes, and Jalen Cox chipped in 11 points with nine rebounds and three assists. Chandler Baker added nine points with three rebounds and two steals off the bench as well.
Why the Colgate Raiders will win
- Colgate has won each of its last 12 night games against the Patriot League.
- Bucknell has lost each of its last nine games at Wesley M. Cotterell Court.
- Bucknell has lost the first half in each of its last seven night games at Wesley M. Cotterell Court.
Why the Bucknell Bison will win
- Bucknell has won five of its last six night games against the Patriot League.
- Bucknell has won the first half in each of its last six road games against the Patriot League.
Colgate vs Bucknell Prediction
I’m going to try Colgate here. In their Saturday matchup versus Lafayette, the Raiders looked good on 58.3 percent shooting from the field and 15-of-27 (55.6 percent) from outside. Colgate blitzed a struggling Leopards team 40-28 on the boards but it wasn’t perfect. The Raiders coughed up 16 turnovers for 14 Lafayette points along the way. Still, Colgate is currently cruising on four straight wins, posting 73 or more points in each of the last three (and 87 or more in two of those).
As for Bucknell, they had a slow first half against a five-win Navy team in their last outing. The Bison shot a nice 47.9 percent from the field in the end, but didn’t do very well on the glass with a 37-26 rebounding deficit. Still, the Bison have won four of their last five games.
The last time these teams met up back on January 5, Bucknell snagged a 66-60 win at home. The Raiders posted just 19 points in the first half in that one and shot 41.5 percent from the field overall. The real killer however, was the 10-of-19 (52.6 percent) from the free throw line. (The 11 turnovers didn’t help either.) Colgate needs a major cleanup this time, but I think they’ll be much better prepared for the home rematch.