Boise State Broncos vs Nebraska Cornhuskers Prediction, Odds, Best Bets - Week 3

Boise State is 3-0 and scoring 114.3 points a game, and No. 25 Nebraska has allowed just 60.7 a game heading into a neutral-site meeting in Sioux Falls.

The Matchup

Boise State meets Nebraska on Sunday at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, on BTN, a neutral floor with Nebraska favored by 9.5 points, a total of 158.5, and the Cornhuskers priced at -325 on the moneyline. Nebraska is 3-0, ranked No. 25 in the AP Top 25, and plays out of the Big Ten Conference. Boise State is also 3-0, now listed in the Pac-12 Conference after playing in the Mountain West last season.

Boise State's start has been loud. The Broncos score 114.3 points a game and allow 71.0, shoot 53 percent from the field and 41 percent from three, and average 47.0 rebounds and 24.0 assists a game.

Nebraska scores 89.0 a game and allows 60.7, with 11.0 steals a game driving its defense. Last season Nebraska went 28-7 while scoring 77.0 and allowing 66.1, a far stronger year than Boise State's 20-12 with 78.2 scored and 73.5 allowed, and that history is a real reason to respect the Huskers here even while this season's Broncos look explosive.

Aginaldo Neto runs Boise State at 20.0 points and 6.0 assists a game, and Dovydas Butka adds 10.0 rebounds a game. Pryce Sandfort leads Nebraska at 22.3 points and 4.7 rebounds a game, with Taj DeGourville at 3.7 assists a game. Neto, Butka, Sandfort, and DeGourville all carry no injury designations.

Key Factors

The number asks Nebraska to win comfortably against a team that has not been slowed down yet. Boise State's 24.0 assists a game against just 8.7 turnovers is the profile that travels: the Broncos get a good shot nearly every trip, and a defense built on steals, like Nebraska's at 11.0 a game, needs live-ball mistakes that Boise State has not been giving away.

The glass matters again. Boise State rebounds at 47.0 a game to Nebraska's 37.7, and on a neutral floor that edge blunts the run-out chances Nebraska feeds on. The Huskers also turn the ball over 13.3 times a game, the loosest handle in this matchup, and Boise State has the length to turn those into the transition chances that keep an underdog close without needing a shooting miracle.

Nebraska's case is real and worth stating plainly. The Huskers allow 60.7 points a game, they went 28-7 last season, and Sandfort at 22.3 points a game is the kind of scorer who can take over the last eight minutes. If Nebraska's pressure finally cracks Boise State's ball handling and the Pentagon crowd, which will lean Husker red, starts to feel like a home game, the favorite can absolutely pull away late. Boise State's three wins all came at home, so this is its first test away from its own building.

Every pick is published with its line before the game. Odds via consensus sportsbooks at time of writing and move constantly. Must be 21+. If gambling is a problem, call or text 1-800-GAMBLER.