Bruins vs Wildcats CBB Basketball Spread/Handicapping
It looked like the sky was falling early this season in Westwood. The team was losing, players were transferring out, eligibility issues – but things have calmed.
It looked like the sky was falling early this season in Westwood. The team was losing, players were transferring out, eligibility issues – but things have calmed.
The Blue Devils are back on top of the polls after several teams joined them with a loss recently. Funnily enough Duke is not at the top of their own conference, a spot occupied by Miami who has yet to lose in ACC play.
The Big Ten is loaded at the top this year, so much so that the Spartans might only be the 4th best team in the conference. They enter this tough road environment on a 5 game winning streak including beating a tough Ohio State team over the weekend.
The Cowboys are a confounding team. They have a lot of talent but it doesn’t always shine through. I am not sure if it is because of youth or whether the pieces are not quite perfectly matched.
In a scheduling quirk the Orange did not play at all during the week this week. Not sure if that is a good or bad thing when you have a monster of a game on the road to play.
You have to love both of these programs for scheduling this one. Especially Gonzaga who is going to be travelling most of the way across the country even though the status of the program is such they really don’t need to do these kinds of things anymore.
Pitt has been struggling with the familiar foes in conference this year. They are just 1-3 since Big East play opened and could have a hangover after losing in overtime to Marquette at home last time out.
The Northern Iowa program is kind of what started a nationwide fascination with the Missouri Valley Conference. For years this program was feared though now it is Creighton and Wichita State that are the beasts of the MVC.
The Volunteers were supposed to be a sleeper team in the SEC this season. They had a good amount of talent returning and some strong teams from last year – like Kentucky and Vanderbilt – were going to make take some lumps this year.
The Gophers have one loss, back in November at the hands of #1 Duke. Since then they have rattled off 10 victories in a row including three to start Big Ten play. Impressive ones too as they have already conquered ranked team Michigan State and Illinois.
Duke is still among the few unbeaten teams in the nation but with forward Ryan Kelly injured their depth will be tested. The Blue Devils have been eased into ACC play this season with easy victories against weak sister programs Wake Forest and Clemson.
St. Mary’s vs Gonzaga is usually the best thing about the West Coast Conference. Last year the Gael’s were able to steal some thunder from the Zags beating them in overtime of the WCC tournament.
This is the SEC kickoff for Alabama, a team in the second tier of the conference but expected to be closer to the top than the bottom. The Crimson Tide team played a tough non-conference schedule.
The Irish are not getting much respect this season. They have just one loss and there are 8 teams ahead of them in the rankings who have more including their opponent Cincinnati.
The Cowboys have impressed early this year. They absolutely hammered N.C. State back when many thought they were championship material and they have just two losses on the season.
#21 Oklahoma State Cowboys (10-2) vs Kansas State Wildcats (11-2)
Saturday January 5
Red Bramlage Coliseum – Manhattan, KS
1:30PM
Moneyline: No ML currently listed
Spread: Kansas State -2.5
O/U: No O/U currently listed at Bovada
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They lost their last game to a very good Gonzaga team by just a point and I think they can surprise in the Big 12 if they play consistently, something that has been a problem for this squad in the past.
To say the Cowboys are perimeter oriented is an understatement. Their top 5 scorers are listed as guards and they are fortunate to have two amazing talents in LeBryan Nash and Marcus Smart. Nash has an NBA ready body and the game to match while Smart might be the best freshman in the country. He has a versatile game: third in scoring, second in rebounding and first in assists. He has been the biggest difference maker from last year to this.
Oklahoma State is 7-3-1 ATS this season and is a nice value play this weekend as a small dog. Winning on the road in a major conference like the Big 12 is never easy but I think they can pull of the upset against a scrappy Kansas State that doesn’t have the kind of top level talent the Cowboys do.
Kansas State also has just two losses and one really impressive victory over Florida – their two losses are to top teams Michigan and Gonzaga too by the way. New coach Bruce Weber inherited a nice team that is certainly built to win now even if their talent doesn’t blow you away. In the early going they have been a fantastic defensive team – 15h in the nation giving up just 56ppg. These guys play with great intensity. [ad-6571516]
The Wildcats have a little bit of everything: size, shooting, and Rodney McGruder. McGruder is a swiss army knife providing scoring, rebounding and excellent perimeter defense. The size comes from Jordan Enriquez who is 6’11 and defends the rim while the shooting is from Shane Southwell who is hitting 45% of his three point shots. They have scrapiness too in the form of guard Will Spradling.
K State is perfect at home (7-0) but is an awful 3-6 ATS overall this season. One factor I really don’t like about this team is that they only hit on 65% of their free throws. Even if they are playing with the lead late their sometimes struggles on offense are compounded by failing in this elementary part of the game.
Spread Pick: Oklahoma State +2.5
O/U Pick
Score Prediction: Oklahoma State 69 – Kansas State 65
There is no doubt Arizona has been the most impressive PAC 12 team thus far but Colorado might be second. They have two losses, one to Kansas (ugly but no shame and a better than you think Wyoming team).