Championship weekend is finally here, with only four teams remaining. I have betting angles for both games, including a side, total and player prop. Our best bets this tournament are 12-7 for +2.6 units and our overall record is 52-42-1 for +9.53 units. Let’s see if we can add to that with my picks for Saturday.
Note: The odds presented below are those at the time when Hutton sends his picks out to DubClub subscribers and are subject to change. Subscribe to Hutton Jackson’s lacrosse picks on DubClub so you never miss out on the best odds for these picks. As soon as Hutton places a bet, you’ll immediately get a notification with both the pick and brief analysis. Picks are sent out at least 20 minutes in advance of articles published on Bet On Lacrosse.
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No. 5 Penn State vs. No. 1 Cornell
 Penn State Moneyline/Spread | +210 / +2.5 |
 Cornell Moneyline/Spread | -270 / -2.5 |
| Total | 25.5 |
| Time | Saturday · 12 p.m. ET |
| TV | ESPN2 |
Odds via bet365
Top-seeded Cornell draws another rematch in the semifinals, this time facing Penn State—the only team to beat the Big Red in 2025. Cornell is once again a 2.5-point favorite and, just like last meeting, I’m backing Penn State as an underdog.
This matchup is tight, but I’m riding with the more balanced Nittany Lions. Cornell has the most efficient offense in the nation, but their defense has struggled against good offenses. Cornell’s defense has an adjusted defensive efficiency percentage of 31.1% during competitive situations, which ranks 51st among Division I teams, according to Lacrosse Reference. Meanwhile, Penn State ranks 9th in both adjusted offensive and defensive efficiency and their 5th-ranked adjusted faceoff percentage edges the Big Red’s 11th-ranked adjusted faceoff percentage.
This time of year, goaltending is key and while Penn State’s Jack Fracyon has had his ups and downs this year, his career body of work edges Cornell’s Wyatt Knust by a decent margin.
Now, maybe your counterargument is that when these teams last faced, Penn State needed a two-minute non-releasable penalty to miraculously erase a four-goal deficit in the final 2:27 to defeat Cornell. While Penn State was lucky to escape with a win, they did so without two of their best players in Matt Traynor and Kyle Lehman and Fracyon making just four saves.
Cornell will draw a Penn State team at full strength and face a defense that has shown the ability to adapt to equally efficient offenses—their zone defense disrupting Notre Dame’s second-ranked offense in the second half just last week was a prime example. Ultimately, I expect the Nittany Lions to deliver another strong defensive performance and think they will not only cover, but also win outright. Bet a unit on Penn State +2.5 at -125 on bet365 and a 0.5 unit on Penn State moneyline at +210 on bet365.
Additionally, I’m betting CJ Kirst to stay under his points prop once again. We’re 3-0 betting Kirst this postseason, cashing in on him going over his goals and shots on goal props in the opening round and under his points prop las week. This weekend, we’re betting him to stay under his points prop again.
Kirst certainly has the ability to have big performances, but has only had seven or more points in six of 17 games this season. He finished with just four points last week against the fifth-best defense in the nation and draws the ninth-best defense this week—which held him to his lowest point total of just three earlier in the year.
Expect Penn State to focus all their efforts on locking him off and bet CJ Kirst Under 6.5 points at -130 on DraftKings.
Picks: Penn State +2.5, Penn State ML (0.5 unit), CJ Kirst Under 6.5 Points
No. 6 Syracuse vs. No. 2 Maryland
 Syracuse Moneyline/Spread | +124 / +1.5 |
 Maryland Moneyline/Spread | -160 / -1.5 |
| Total | 22 |
| Time | Saturday · 2:30 p.m. ET |
| TV | ESPN2 |
Odds via DraftKings
We get another rematch from earlier in the year when the Orange face the Terrapins. Maryland is a slight favorite and the total currently ranges between 22 and 22.5.
Only one Maryland game this season has gone over 22 total goals and the Terps’ tendency to play slow gives me pause when considering a bet on the full game over. Yet, six of Maryland’s 16 games have tied or gone over the first half total of 11. High-scoring first halves have been even more common for the Orange, with the first half of 12 of their 18 games tying or going over this total. Syracuse ranks fifth in adjusted offensive efficiency and Maryland isn’t far behind, sitting at 10th according to Lacrosse Reference.
The other reason I expect this first half to go over the total is because both teams desire a fast start. The Terps have been able to win slugfests against other similarly slow-paced teams, but keeping this high-powered Syracuse offense that can go on runs is a taller task. We saw them win a relatively lower-scoring game against the Orange earlier, but I expect Syracuse to be more efficient than in their last meeting with the Terps.
Maryland’s best chance at another win is to build an early lead and take advantage of transition opportunities. In fact, Maryland Coach John Tillman even mentioned that they’d like to push the tempo on Saturday.
Ultimately, I expect a higher-scoring first half and recommend betting Over 11 (1st Half) at -125 on DraftKings.
Pick: Over 11 (1st Half)
2025 College Lacrosse Season Best Bets: 52-42-1 for +9.53 units this season
All bets are to win 1 unit or more (i.e. 1.2 units at -120, 1 unit at +120) unless otherwise specified.
Subscribe to Hutton Jackson’s lacrosse picks on DubClub so you never miss out on the best odds for these picks. As soon as Hutton places a bet, you’ll immediately get a notification with both the pick and brief analysis!
Use code “Lax10” to get 10% off your Streaker Sports order!
