The West Virginia Mountaineers and the Baylor Bears lock horns this Saturday in a first-round match in the Big 12 Tournament. While the Mountaineers are virtual locks to get into the National Tournament, they sure want to sweep the Baylor Bears this season. As for the Bears, a win over WVU could go a long way in convincing the committee in giving them a spot in the Big Dance. Register to bet on your pick.
Betting Preview for the West Virginia Mountaineers vs. Baylor Bears Big 12 Tournament College Basketball Game on March 8, 2018
Where: Sprint Center, Kansas City, MO
When: Thursday, March 8, 9:00 PM ET
Line: West Virginia Mountaineers (n/a) vs. Baylor Bears (n/a) – view all NCAA Basketball lines
TV Broadcast: ESPN
Betting on the West Virginia Mountaineers (22-9)
West Virginia took a gut punch before it walked out the door of the Big 12 play, absorbing an 87-79 overtime loss to the Texas Longhorns in Austin last Saturday. It was a letdown loss for the Mountaineers, as it took away the momentum of a prior three-game win streak. That said, they are 2-0 SU this season against Baylor, so if anything, the Mountaineers have the psychological advantage heading into the contest. West Virginia has a balanced game. It is averaging 80.4 points per game and allows just 68.9 per contest. That has been a trademark of Bob Huggins team, so don’t expect the Mountaineers to change anytime soon. West Virginia gave Baylor tremendous headaches defensively, as the Mountaineers caused Baylor to commit 35 turnovers in the two teams’ past couple of meetings.
Betting on the Baylor Bears (18-13)
Baylor could definitely strengthen its case for inclusion in the Big Dance via an at-large berth while at the same time keep its hopes alive for an auto-bid with a win this Thursday against the Mountaineers. Baylor is being spearheaded by the pair of Manu Lecomte and Jo Lual-Acuil Jr. Lecomte averages 15.7 points per game to go with 3.6 assists, Lual-Acuil is putting up 14.4 points and 8.8 rebounds. While they have lost the past two dates with WVU, the Bears had a positive takeaway in those games, as they outrebounded the Mountaineers in both contests. During their close 57-54 loss on Jan. 9 in Morgantown, the Bears had 44 boards against the Mountaineers’ 36. Baylor is 34th nationally with 38.2 rebounds per contest. Baylor is 5-4-1 ATS in its last 10 games as the underdog.
Writer’s Prediction
West Virginia wins, 65-61.
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