NCAA Hoops Odds: Texas Longhorns vs Nebraska Cornhuskers Preview & Pick
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Texas Longhorns vs. Nebraska Cornhuskers
Date: Saturday, February 19, 1:30 p.m. ET
Venue: Bob Devaney Sports Center, Lincoln, NB
Broadcast: ESPN3.com
Longhorns vs. Cornhuskers lines from Sportsbook.com
Longhorns: -6.5
Cornhuskers: +6.5
Total: OFF
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The Texas Longhorns are ranked second in the country and is riding a big-time winning streak. They’ll face bitter Big 12 rival Nebraska on Saturday, and the Cornhuskers are desperate for a big win as a bubble team. Can they pull it off despite Texas’ recent dominance in the head-to-head series?
Texas (23-3, 16-4 ATS) has rolled to 11 consecutive victories. The Longhorns have been dominant on college basketball odds during that span, going 9-2 against the spread—although both losses have come in their past four games. Texas covered in Wednesday’s 73-55 romp over Oklahoma State.
The winning streak has been highlighted by some excellent defense. Only four times during the run has an opponent managed to score 60 or more points on Texas, with a high of just 63 points. The Longhorns have allowed just 54.6 points per game in their last 11 outings, and they held Oklahoma State to just 37.5 percent from the field. The shutdown “D” has helped Texas take control early, as the Longhorns haven’t trailed once in their past seven games.
At the other end of the floor, Texas runs a balanced system that features four different players averaging double figures this season. Sophomore swingman Jordan Hamilton leads the way with 18.7 points per game. He dropped 15 on the Cowboys despite going just 4-for-13 from the field. Though it hasn’t cost Texas yet, Hamilton needs to get his three-point shooting back in order. He’s hit just seven of his last 23 shots, just 30.4 percent.
But even if Hamilton slacks off a bit, there are plenty of others to pick up the pace. Tristan Thompson (five), Gary Johnson (four) and Cory Joseph (three) each have consecutive-games streaks going in which they’ve scored double figures. None has scored more than 17 points in that span—these guys never get too high nor too, low; they are very consistent. That group doesn’t even include sixth man J’Covan Brown, who is averaging nearly nine points per game off the bench.
Nebraska (17-8, 9-8 ATS) recently suffered through a three-game losing streak, but the Huskers are seemingly back on track. They’ve won two consecutive games, including a 59-58 victory at Oklahoma on Wednesday. They didn’t help NCAA basketball betting fans, though, failing to cover as two-point favorites. Nebraska is just 2-3 ATS in its last five games.
Coaxing a little more offense out of the team would be nice. Nebraska is averaging just 67.5 points per game this season. The Cornhuskers have topped 70 points just once in their last six games, averaging just 61.6 points per game in that span. At least the Huskers are getting it done at the other end of the floor; they’ve held 15 opponents to fewer than 50 points this season.
The hero against Oklahoma was sophomore Jorge Brian Diaz. The center scored a career-high 17 points on 7-for-9 shooting, and he tied a career high with three blocks. Diaz had scored in single figures in three consecutive games. Now, Nebraska just needs to find a way to get him to pound the glass. Despite standing 6’11” tall, Diaz is averaging just 4.4 rebounds per game this season. He has double-digits rebounds in only one game all year.
Diaz’s performance made up for the struggles of leading-scorer Lance Jeter. The senior guard (11.0 points per game this season) was just 2-for-9 against Oklahoma, finishing with seven points. Jeter has made just 30 percent of his shots in his last two games, and he’s shot below 40 percent in three of his past four. He at least grabbed eight boards against the Cowboys.
This series has been completely dominated by Texas, as the Longhorns are 8-1 in their past nine games against Nebraska. The Cornhuskers usually put up a fight, though, as they are 6-3 ATS in those games. Still, it’s hard to imagine Nebraska being able to hang up enough points to compete in this one. Texas has the weapons to penetrate Nebraska’s defense, not to mention fielding a pretty impressive defense of its own. This one should get ugly. Take the Longhorns.
Trends:
Under is 10-1 in TEX last 11 vs. Big 12.
Under is 15-3 in TEX last 18 overall.
TEX are 9-2 ATS in their last 11 vs. Big 12.
Under is 27-9 in NEB last 36 home games.
Under is 20-8 in NEB last 28 Sat. games.
Under is 11-5 in NEB last 16 overall.
Texas at Nebraska pick: Longhorns
Ian Van Den Hurk has covered amateur and pro sports for years, including a successful run handicapping anything from football to mixed martial arts.
