It was just two weeks ago when the Oklahoma Sooners annihilated the Texas Tech Red Raiders at the Lloyd Noble Center with a dominant 91-67 win. That loss was undoubtedly one of the worst ones that the Red Raiders had to endure this season. But now, they’ll have a chance to get their revenge against their conference rivals in front of a thunderous home crowd. Can they pull off the upset? Or will the Sooners embarrass them once more?
Read on below for a complete breakdown of this Big 12 matchup. And if you’re craving for more college hoops action, check out our previews of the No. 20 Duke Blue Devils vs. No. 5 North Carolina Tar Heels and No. 4 Iowa Hawkeyes vs. Penn State Nittany Lions.
Oklahoma Sooners vs. Texas Tech Red Raiders Preview
Where: United Supermarkets Arena, Lubbock, Texas
When: Wednesday, February 17, 9:00 PM ET
Line: Oklahoma Sooners (-6) at Texas Tech Red Raiders (+6) – view all NCAA Basketball lines
TV Broadcast: ESPN2
Betting on the Oklahoma Sooners (20-4, 8-4 Big 12)
Hield’s offensive prowess was again on full display against Kansas on Saturday, scoring a total of 24 points to go along with four rebounds and assists. Unfortunately though, the Sooners couldn’t come away with the victory as they eventually lost to the Jayhawks, 76-72.
Despite this tough setback, Oklahoma’s next matchup is going to be a favorable one—against Texas Tech. And needless to say, the Sooners are going to mercilessly unleash their frustrations on them.
Expect Hield, who put up 30 points during their previous meeting with the Red Raiders, to be his usual dominant self. The sharp-shooting guard has been a man on a mission over his last eight games, averaging 24.8 PPG on 48.8 percent shooting. Hield will be set to test a Texas Tech defense that’s allowing 69.5 PPG.
Apart from Hield, making the Sooners even more dangerous is the trio of Isaiah Cousins (13.9 PPG), Jordan Woodard (13.1 PPG) and Ryan Spangler (10.7 PPG). Those three are all posting double-figures in points throughout this season.
Cousins and Woodard, in particular, are also very deadly from down town, shooting 45.6% and 46.8% respectively. If these two start knocking down some treys, it’s going to be almost impossible for Texas Tech to even hang around with the Sooners in this game.
Oklahoma is 7-3 SU and 5-5 ATS in its last 10 road games.
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Betting on the Texas Tech Red Raiders (15-9, 5-7 Big 12)
Wait a minute. The Red Raiders might actually be able to make things interesting later as they’re coming off impressive wins over a pair of top-25 teams in Iowa State and Baylor. During that brief stretch, Texas Tech has found a consistent rhythm on offense, averaging 84.5 points collectively. The pair of Keenan Evans and Aaron Ross has been a big reason for that recent offensive success.
Evans, who is only posting 8.5 PPG, 2.9 RPG and 2.6 APG this season, has been making a name for himself lately by scoring in double-figures in his last three games, including a 21-point explosion against the Bears on Saturday night.
Ross, meanwhile, has been on a tear coming off the bench for the Red Raiders. He’s tallying 16.2 PPG and 6.4 RPG while shooting 10-for-24 from three in his last five outings.
Defense, however, will be of utmost important in this contest. They’ll need to prevent Buddy Hield and the rest of Oklahoma’s shooters from finding their mark. That being said, the pressure is on the Red Raiders’ perimeter defenders to constantly communicate with one another and to space the floor properly.
Texas Tech, which is allowing 7.4 three-pointers per game this season, is 2-3 SU and 1-4 ATS in its past five games at home.
Writer’s Prediction
Oklahoma (-6) wins by 10-plus points.
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