Saint Joseph's vs. South Florida CBB picks: Wednesday matinee special from Annapolis on Veterans Day
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Saint Joseph's and South Florida face off on CBS Sports Network in a Veterans Day matinee special
• 4 min read
I completely forgot today was Veterans Day – thank you to all who served – and because of that, we get a bit of a weekday matinee treat from college basketball. The U.S. Naval Academy hosts the 13th annual Veterans Classic and faces Penn in the second game of the CBS Sports Network doubleheader, with a 5:30 ET tip. I'm more interested in the first game, with Saint Joseph's of the Atlantic 10 taking on South Florida of the American with a 3 ET tip from Alumni Hall in Annapolis, Md. Claim the best Kalshi promo code CBSSPORTS55, trade $25, and receive a $55 bonus here:
On the spread of -7.5 at DraftKings, USF is taking almost all the early ATS action via handle and tickets. About 84% of money and 70% of bets are on the Under 151.5. Fans interested in college basketball betting can keep up with trends, news and follow our experts to be prepared before wagering at any of the top sports betting apps. Bet on NCAA hoops and more at DraftKings and get $200 in bonus bets plus three free months of NBA League Pass:
USF-Saint Joseph's CBB parlay (DraftKings)
- Bulls money line/Under 151.5 (+150)
Saint Joseph's (2-0) was picked to finish sixth in the 14-team Atlantic 10 this season. The Hawks haven't been an NCAA Tournament team since 2016, but it's not out of the question next March. In his first year with the program in 2025-26, Steve Donahue guided Saint Joseph's to 24 total wins, a third-place finish in the A-10 and spot in the NIT, where it lost in the quarterfinals. Donahue was named A-10 Coach of the Year.
The school has started 2-0 in consecutive seasons for the first time since 2015-17 and has taken care of business at home against Longwood and Lafayette. The Hawks were dragged to OT on Saturday against the Leopards but ended up winning by 10 thanks to finishing overtime on a 12-0 run. Saint Joseph's had a whopping 16 steals, its most since 2006 and two shy of the school record.
Good thing the defense was good, because the Hawks were a brutal 3-for-22 from deep, tied for their worst 3-point shooting game under Donahue. Junior guard Khaafiq Myers, who averaged only 5.1 points last season coming off the bench, led the way with a career-high 24 points, including six of his team's 12 in OT.
But the best player is junior guard Jaiden Glover-Toscano, who averages 20.0 points on 50.0% from the field and 7.0 rebounds. JGT was named preseason First-Team All-Atlantic 10 and Saint Joseph's is 12-2 all-time when he scores at least 20 points. Forward Sean Logan, a transfer from Davidson, leads the country in blocks per game at 6.0 but is 2-for-12 from the free-throw line. That's almost hard to do.
This is not a good offensive team and Saint Joseph's is one of three schools in Division I shooting below the following benchmarks (minimum two games played entering this week): 40% from the field, 25% from deep and 60% from the free-throw line. Yet the Hawks are 2-0. The others are Canisius and Mount St. Mary's, and they are a combined 2-3. This is the first non-home game of the season, and the Hawks were 3-1 at neutral sites in 2025-26.
South Florida is on its fifth head coach in five seasons after the Bulls won 25 games last season and reached the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2012 (when in the Big East). But that success meant coach Bryan Hodgson was one-and-done in Tampa, hired away by Providence (and just one player is back from that club). USF replaced him with Chris Mack, who had been at College of Charleston but previously was at big-time programs Louisville and Xavier.
The Bulls trounced Charleston Southern in the opener but lost at DePaul last Thursday, 82-80. USF nearly rallied from a 50-35 halftime hole, but its bench was outscored by a whopping 36-8. South Florida has made at least nine 3-pointers in both games after ranking second in the American last season at 9.2 made per game.
Toledo transfer guard Sonny Wilson, a preseason all-conference first-team pick, leads USF in scoring (17.5) and assists (8.0). He was a two-time All-MAC pick with the Rockets. Mack also brought 2025-26 CAA All-Freshman Team member Chris Davis Jr. with him from College of Charleston and he's second on the Bulls at 16.0 PPG. South Florida ranks sixth in the nation in averaging only seven turnovers per game and sits No. 29 with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.21.
It's the first meeting between these schools since 2022. One key player on USF has experience vs. Saint Joseph's however, in forward and George Washington transfer Garrett Johnson. He tied his career high with 26 points in the DePaul loss and had 13 points and five rebounds against the Hawks back on Feb. 4 while with GW (which lost).
This is an "old" team with a pair of 24-year-olds in the starting lineup in Johnson and Mike James, and a 23-year-old Josh Omojafo as a big part of the rotation. Omojafo is the only returning 2025-26 player.
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Hit my first college hoops play of the season in this space on Michigan as a sizable dog vs. UConn last week. And my original plan was to take Saint Joseph's at an alt number high dog, but DraftKings is offering me a "pre-made" parlay on the USF money line and the Under at that +150 number and that works just fine by me. Let the book do the work.
I'm not worried about the Bulls winning, but it will come down to that total -- our model has 152 points scored. I prefer Unders in early starting games like these that guys aren't used to. Plus, new gym surroundings for both and the Hawks really struggling offensively so far. Check out other expert picks in the SportsLine daily newsletter.
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