Florida State vs California Prediction 1/22/25 College Basketball Picks

The Florida State Seminoles and the California Golden Bears meet Wednesday in college basketball action from Haas Pavilion. Here’s a Florida State vs California prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Florida State vs California pick. We will examine:

The Florida State Seminoles’ recent form and player performance

The California Golden Bears’ recent form and player performance

Recent betting trends and streaks involving the Florida State Seminoles

Recent betting trends and streaks involving the California Golden Bears

Recent betting trends in games played between Florida State and California

A summary that ties it all together and produces a favorable betting outcome for the Florida State vs California game

Florida State Seminoles Betting Preview

The Seminoles have been quite the consistent team so far this year; they’ve only had one instance of consecutive losses so far. Florida State opened on a 7-1 run with a lone defeat by Florida mixed with wins over Northern Kentucky, Rice, Tarleton State, Hofstra, Temple, UMass, and Western Carolina. A spotty 2-3 stretch came next, however, with wins over Tulane and Winthrop mixed among losses to LSU, NC State, and Louisville. Since then it’s been a 4-1 run for Florida State. The lone loss in that time came courtesy of Clemson. Otherwise, it was wins over Syracuse, Miami, Pittsburgh, and Georgia Tech for a 13-5 overall run so far this year.

In the Georgia Tech matchup on Saturday, the Seminoles opened up with a 37-24 advantage after the first half. Florida State kept the pace from there on a 54-54 stretch and won it 91-78 in the end. Leading the team in scoring during the victory was Taylor Bol Bowen with 20 points and four rebounds. Malique Ewin added a double-double on 17 points and 11 boards with four assists, while Jamir Watkins had 17 points with five rebounds, three assists, and two steals.

California Golden Bears Betting Preview

Over on the California side, they opened up on a solid run over their first seven games. The Bears have had trouble keeping their heads above water since then, though. Cal lost to only Vanderbilt with wins otherwise versus CSU Bakersfield, Cal Poly, USC, Air Force, Sac State, and Mercyhurst during a 6-1 opening stretch. The Bears are just 3-8 in their most recent 11 outings, though. The wins in that time came versus Northwestern State, Virginia, and NC State. Otherwise, it was losses to Missouri, Stanford, Cornell, San Diego State, Pittsburgh, Clemson, Virginia Tech, and North Carolina for a .500 run through the first 18 games of the year.

In the NC State game over the weekend, the Golden Bears hit a 31-29 advantage over the first half. California posted a 34-33 run the rest of the way for a 65-62 victory in the end. Jovan Blacksher managed 14 points with three rebounds and two assists to lead the team. DJ Campbell added 13 points with two rebounds, while Jeremiah Wilkinson came off the bench for 11 points in 19 minutes of work on the court.

Why the California Golden Bears will win

• California has won eight of its last nine night games at Haas Pavilion against non-AP-ranked opponents.
• Florida State has lost three of its last four road games against non-AP-ranked opponents.

Why the Florida State Seminoles will win

• Florida State has won each of its last four night games.
• California has lost 10 of its last 12 games against Conference opponents.

Florida State vs California Prediction

I’m staying with FSU. The Seminoles didn’t have a ton of issues versus a middling Georgia Tech team in their last matchup, eventually shooting 52.2 percent from the field with a 39-32 rebounding edge and just eight turnovers. Florida State has been scoring quite well all season. They’ve got 72 or more points in all but one game (57 in a loss to Clemson) and a combined 173 in their last pair.

As for California, they notched a much-needed win over a decent NC State team in their last outing thanks to 45.3 percent shooting and a 38-31 rebounding advantage. The Bears haven’t cracked 68 points in any of their last three games however, so it’s hard to imagine them keeping a winning pace with FSU if the Seminoles really get going on the scoreboard.