Last Saturday was brutal to some teams, and that includes the Baylor Bears, who suffered their first loss of the year. The Bears are still a force to reckon with in the nation, priced at +950 to win the 2020 Championship. Up next for them is a rematch against the Kansas State Wildcats, who just wants to end a lengthy losing skid.
Betting on the Kansas State Wildcats (9-8 Overall / 2-12 Conference)
The Wildcats’ tailspin continues. They are now on a seven-game losing skid after suffering a 70-59 loss at home to the Texas Longhorns last Saturday. Kansas State has still to shake off their offensive struggles. They shot just 34.5 percent from the field in the Longhorns game and went 3 of 14 from deep. They also wasted a lot of freebies, going just 16 of 29 from the free throw line. Kansas State’s misery on that end of the floor was perhaps best encapsulated by it not getting a field goal over the game’s final seven minutes and 40 seconds. Baylor’s defense is only going to make it harder for the Wildcats to get buckets, but Kansas State can also return the favor by playing pesky defense on the Bears. In the first meeting with the Bears this season, Kansas State forced Baylor to commit 14 turnovers, albeit in a 73-67 home loss.
The Wildcats are 3-2 against the spread (ATS) in their last five home games.
Betting on the Baylor Bears (24-2 Overall / 13-1 Conference)
The Bears are coming off their first loss in a very long while. After stitching together a 23-game win streak, the Bears hit a brick wall last Saturday in the form of a 64-63 loss in Waco to the Kansas Jayhawks. That game was always expected to be a hard-fought one, as the Jayhawks are also in the running for a No. 1 seed in the national tournament. Baylor didn’t have an answer for Kansas big man Udoka Azubuike, who muscled his way through for 23 points and 19 rebounds to go with three blocks. The good news for Baylor is it’s not going to deal with Azubuike anymore, at least for the remainder of the regular season. Kansas State doesn’t have anyone as singularly imposing and dominant as Azubuike, so the Bears will not need any specially-designed defensive plays and continue relying on the formula that has flummoxed opponents this season. Baylor is allowing just 58.2 points per game — third-best in the nation.
