NCAAM Basketball Parlay Picks (Jan. 20): SEC, Big Ten and Big 12 Matchups Lead Best Bets

Thank you, Indiana. Not only did you treat us to a great college football national championship game, but we can focus on college basketball now that the football season is officially over. With that in mind, allow me to present my college basketball parlay picks of the day for January 20.

But first, a word of caution when betting on parlays: Don’t get greedy. It is easy to add another leg, which can make the odds and your potential payout skyrocket. However, the house has the advantage with parlay betting. That one last leg you had to add will often be the one that loses the parlay for you.

(Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)

You are better off sticking to two or three legs. You will not win as much, but you are more likely to win. All odds I used for both parlays below are via bet365.

College Basketball Parlay No. 1 for Jan. 20

• Vanderbilt-Arkansas, OVER 174 at -110

My first instinct was to go with the Vanderbilt ML and take advantage of the plus-money odds. Yes, Arkansas has been playing well, especially at home. But the Commodores have been one of the best teams in the country — until the last two games (their only losses).

With Arkansas losing two of its last three, I don’t trust them to get the win. However, both teams have excellent offenses and fair-to-mediocre defenses. This game will turn into a track meet. The OVER is 7-3 for Arkansas at home and 2-0 for Vanderbilt against ranked opponents.

• Georgia ML at -110 (vs. Missouri)

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The Bulldogs and Missouri are set up for a great matchup. It would be shocking if one team were to blow out the other. This is a game that should go down to the wire, with one or two possessions making the difference. Georgia’s aggressive defense is excellent at forcing mistakes. With Missouri losing two of its last three games, a few early forced mistakes could give the Bulldogs a mental edge that will pay off.

• Kansas -4.5 at -105 (vs. Colorado)

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Colorado got off to a 2-0 start in Big 12 play but has since lost three straight. What went wrong? Well, its defense (No. 275 in the country) is struggling to stop opponents, and its offense can’t score enough to keep up (tied for No. 70, 83.2 points per game).

Kansas has already dropped two conference games, but it also has a dominant win over No. 2 Iowa State (84-63). The Jayhawks' defense (No. 43) is good enough to slow the Buffs down, but the Colorado defense will not be able to do the same vs. the Kansas offense for the whole game.

• Parlay Odds: +611

A $100 wager will result in a $711 payday, your stake plus $611 in winnings.

College Basketball Parlay Pick No. 2 for Jan. 20

• Michigan State-Oregon, UNDER 137 at -110

Michigan State will win this game. But it is hard to say with certainty if the Spartans will cover the 11-point spread. Oregon is not a strong offensive team and will struggle to score, but I’m not confident enough in the Michigan State offense to say it'll cover.

However, with the Spartans' top-10 defense leading the way, the OVER is 5-13 for Michigan State this season and 1-6 in conference play

• Purdue -5.5 at -110

UCLA strikes me as one of those teams that looks better on paper than it is on the floor. Why? The Bruins' nonconference schedule was relatively easy, allowing them to pad their stats. Hence, going 4-3 once the competition got real in Big Ten play. Purdue, however, is one of the best teams in the country.

The Boilermakers are more battle-tested than the Bruins with wins over three ranked teams (and one loss). I don’t think we’ll know how good they are until they face Michigan and Michigan State, but they are definitely playing well enough to cover a 5.5-point spread against a mediocre UCLA team.

• Parlay Odds:+264

A $100 wager will result in a $364 payday, your stake plus $264 in winnings.