The Yale Bulldogs look to stay hot and in first place in the Ivy League when they host the Harvard Crimson in the earliest game on the Friday college basketball schedule. The Bulldogs (16-4), who are tied for the conference lead with Princeton at 4-0, are 7-0 on their home court, while the Crimson (13-6), who are tied for third in the league with Penn and Brown at 2-2, are 6-3 on the road. 

Tip-off from Lee Amphitheater in New Haven, Conn., is set for 5 p.m. ET. The Bulldogs are 5.5-point favorites in the latest Yale vs. Harvard odds, while the over-under for total points scored is set at 136.5. Before making any Harvard vs. Yale picks, check out the college basketball predictions from the SportsLine Projection Model.

This model, which simulates every game 10,000 times, has crushed its top-rated college basketball picks against the spread the past three years, returning $2,770 to $100 players. It also enters Week 14 of the 2019-20 season on a 33-15 run on all top-rated college basketball picks. Anybody who followed it during that span has seen some huge returns.

Now, the model has set its sights on Yale vs. Harvard. You can visit SportsLine now to see the picks. Here are the college basketball lines and trends for Harvard vs. Yale: 

  • Harvard vs. Yale spread: Yale -5.5
  • Harvard vs. Yale over-under: 136.5 points
  • Harvard vs. Yale money line: Harvard +201, Yale -249
  • HARV: Is averaging 73.2 points per game
  • YALE: Is 18th in the country in 3-point percentage at 38.0

Why Yale can cover

The Bulldogs, who won last year's Ivy League Tournament title and automatic NCAA Tournament bid, are looking to earn their sixth NCAA appearance and second in a row. Yale is also looking for its seventh consecutive winning season and ninth in 11 years. The Bulldogs are 10-3 against the spread in their last 13 games following a straight-up win.

Junior forward Paul Atkinson continues to set the pace for the Bulldogs, averaging 17.1 points and 7.8 rebounds per game. Atkinson has scored 20 or more points in three of the past four games, including 24 in an 86-71 win over Cornell on Saturday. Atkinson has posted back-to-back double-doubles, and five over the past 10 games.

Why Harvard can cover

Even so, the Bulldogs aren't a lock to cover the Harvard vs. Yale spread. That's because the Crimson have dominated the Bulldogs over the past eight games, winning six of them. Under coach Tommy Amaker, now in his 13th season at the school, Harvard has posted a 17-10 record against the Bulldogs. The Crimson are also 21-8 against the spread in their last 29 games against a team with a winning percentage above .600.

Senior forward Chris Lewis has been hot of late and has scored in double figures in nine straight games, including a 16-point performance in a 75-72 loss to Penn last Friday. Lewis is averaging 12.2 points and 6.3 rebounds. His best game so far this season was a 22-point performance at George Washington on Dec. 21.  

How to make Harvard vs. Yale picks

SportsLine's model is leaning over on the total as six players hit double-digit scoring in the simulations. It's also generated an extremely strong against-the-spread pick that hits almost 70 percent of the time. 

So who wins Harvard vs. Yale? And which side of the spread can you bank on in almost 70 percent of simulations? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the Yale vs. Harvard spread to jump on, all from the advanced model that is up more than $2,700 on its college basketball picks the last three years, and find out.