By Dan Kilbridge | | 4 mins
Latest Wooden Award Odds: Iowa’s Garza Remains Unchallenged
|
Deposit $250, Get $250 in Free Bets. Promo Code: BOOKIESNJ |
Bet Now |
It’s business as usual this week on the Wooden Award betting watch.
Iowa center Luka Garza is still the uncontested college basketball betting favorite with -500 odds, and the board looks exactly the same as it did last week. We don’t expect that to continue for much longer – given all the early delays and cancellations, many teams and players are just starting to hit their midseason stride.
Things will become much clearer in the coming weeks as we approach the midway point of conference play, but whether you think Garza will continue to run away with it or a current longshot will ultimately emerge in this popular college basketball futures market, now is a good time to jump in if you feel strongly about anyone’s odds.
Illinois’ Ayo Dosunmu is holding strong at No. 2 on the board at +500, while Gonzaga big man Corey Kispert is right behind him at +800.
RELATED: Check out our college basketball expert picks.
Odds to Win the 2021 Wooden Award
| Player, School | Odds |
|---|---|
| Luka Garza, Iowa | -500 |
| Ayo Dosunmu, Illinois | +500 |
| Corey Kispert, Gonzaga | +800 |
| Jared Butler, Baylor | +1500 |
| Ochai Agbaji, Kansas | +2000 |
| Jalen Suggs, Gonzaga | +2000 |
| Drew Timme, Gonzaga | +2000 |
| Cade Cunningham, Oklahoma State | +3000 |
| Trayce Jackson-Davis, Indiana | +3000 |
| Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, Villanova | +3000 |
| Marcus Zegarowski, Creighton | +3000 |
All college basketball odds are via DraftKings and are current as of publication and subject to change.
|
20% Deposit Bonus up to $1000 |
Bet Now |
C Luka Garza, Iowa
Current odds: -500
Betting outlook: Garza remains in complete control of the race and is coming off a 33-point showing Sunday in an 86-71 win over Minnesota. He also had 24 points and seven rebounds in a midweek win at Maryland.
Garza is averaging 27.6 points and 8.6 rebounds, and he’s still the nation’s leading scorer. He’s also coming up on a relatively easy stretch with games against unranked Michigan State, Northwestern, Indiana and Nebraska before a Jan. 29 matchup at No. 14 Illinois. We don’t expect his odds to go any longer than -500 during that stretch.
G Ayo Dosunmu, Illinois
Current odds: +500
Betting outlook: Dosunmu has fallen off a bit after back-to-back 30-point games, but his No. 2 spot on the betting board is safe for another week. He scored 23 points and grabbed eight rebounds in a 66-63 home loss to Maryland Sunday, which snapped the Illini’s four-game win streak.
Dosunmu and the Illini have some time off because Wednesday’s game against Nebraska was postponed due to a positive COVID-19 test in the Huskers’ program. That extra prep will be useful ahead of Saturday’s game against No. 21 Ohio State.
Dosunmu isn’t sharing the ball as much over the past few weeks, and his assist totals have fallen off. However, he’s still second in the Big Ten with 22.4 points per game, behind only Garza, and the Illini are two games out of first place. A strong title push in the coming weeks would certainly help Dosunmu’s campaign, which has stalled out over the past few games.
F Corey Kispert, Gonzaga
Current odds: +800
Betting outlook: Kispert is one of several individual standouts on the No. 1 Bulldogs, but he’s managed to separate himself as the top Wooden contender on the Bulldogs’ roster.
The 6-foot-7 senior is Gonzaga’s leading scorer at 21.1 points a night, along with 4.5 rebounds. He only played 28 minutes in a blowout win over Portland Saturday, during which he had 14 points and six rebounds. He also failed to get to the free-throw line for just the second time this season.
Gonzaga will probably run the table with no ranked opponents left on the schedule. With no big regular season games left and two other Wooden contenders on the same roster, any major individual accolades will require more production from Kispert down the stretch.
Best of the Rest
Even beyond the top three, odds for the realistic contenders are unchanged. Baylor’s Jared Butler scored a season-high 28 points in a 67-49 win over TCU Saturday, but he’s stuck at fourth on the board with +1500 odds.
Gonzaga big man Drew Timme is a clear second-choice among Bulldog forwards at +2000. He’s even with another teammate, freshman guard Jalen Suggs, and Kansas big man Ochai Agbaji, all of whom sit tied for fifth on the board at +2000.
