Month: February 2014

Iowa St.vs Oklahoma St. CBB Picks

The Cyclones have come back to earth a bit in conference play but if you look closely they have only two losses to Kansas and a loss to a Texas team that just whooped the Jayhawks. [ad-4468020]

Iowa State Cyclones (16-4) vs Oklahoma State Cowboys (16-5)
Monday February 3
Gallagher-Iba Arena – Stillwater, OK
9:00PM
Moneyline: No moneyline currently listed
Spread: Oklahoma State -6
O/U: No total currently listed
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ATS Matchup Insight | CP Insider Gambling Preview

Iowa State

Still there are some questions as to whether they can really stand toe to toe with the best teams in what some are calling the best conference in America. Iowa State is very good but they are a very different team away from their cozy Hilton Coliseum.

Even though the competition has stiffened the Cyclones are still scoring tons of points, ranking 7th in the nation. Melvin Ejim, Georges Niang and DeAndre Kane all average more than 16ppg and give the Cyclones a pretty diverse offense even though they lack a traditional post player. Niang has all the right moves around the hoop but since he is only 6’7″ he is far from a dominating physical presence. These guys are just really good at putting the ball through the hoop.

Early on Iowa State was a favourite of bettors but they have lost their last 6 games against the spread and are now just 9-9 ATS. This team has one in tough environments like up at BYU but they are only 2-3 SU and ATS on the road. This should be a good battle as the Cowboys are not blessed with great length either. They are catching them at a good time too.
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Oklahoma State

You could tell early on on Saturday you were not getting a great effort from Oklahoma State. As it turned out they lost in overtime to a super desperate Baylor team and now they get a very good Iowa State team visiting. This team has lost their last two and three of four and seems to be searching for some answers. There is no doubt that there is a lot of talent down in Stillwater but bringing it all together has been a challenge of late.

PG Marcus Smart may be the best player in college basketball but he is forcing it lately. In the loss to Baylor he took 7 three point shots and missed them all. He is not a long range marksman and if he hadn’t made 11 trips to the foul line might have had his worst game as a collegian. They need him to get back to being an efficient all around performer instead of a guy looking to justify being the top pick in the draft. Speaking of efficient it looks like LeBryan Nash may have finally discovered his niche.

Even after their weekend setback against Baylor the Cowboys are still 5-2 ATS at home this season – that was their first SU loss. This is a game where they can exploit some matchups on the perimeter and be able to play the way they want to. Still I worry about their toughness as the Cyclones don’t give away anything.

Spread Pick: Iowa State +6
O/U Pick: N/A
Score Prediction: Oklahoma State 80 – Iowa State 76