NCAA Basketball Betting – Bears vs Aggies
No. 6 Baylor (19-2, 6-2) looks to complete its second consecutive series sweep of Texas A&M (12-8, 3-5) when the two teams square off Wednesday in College Station for the final time in the regular season as Big 12 Conference rivals.
Date/Time: 9:00 PM ET, Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Venue: Reed Arena, College Station, Texas
Broadcast: ESPN2
Spread: OFF
Over/Under: OFF
Wednesday’s game marks the 205th meeting of the “Battle of the Brazos” series with Texas A&M, the second-most played series in Baylor basketball history. It always provides some great basketball and this year will be no exception.
The Bears are 12-4 against its three in-state Big 12 opponents in its last 16 games heading into this one, and are off to a program-best 19-2 start and is 6-2 in conference play for the first time since 1986-87. However, they are still in third in a very competitive conference behind Kansas and Missouri.
Baylor lit it up in Waco over the weekend and beat a slumping Texas Longhorns team, 76-71, while boosting its record to 5-1 in games decided by 5 points or fewer this season.
Baylor used its advantage on the boards to generate more possessions and won the battle at the charity stripe, with 79 percent shooting compared to 61 by the Longhorns.
Perry Jones III was the leading scorer for the Bears with 22 points in 35 minutes. Jones III also led everyone with 14 rebounds.
The Bears have different players —Jones III (14.7), Quincy Miller (12.8), Quincy Acy (12.6), Pierre Jackson (12.5) and Brady Heslip (10.0) — that are averaging more than 10 points per game.
As for the Aggies, they have lost four straight to Baylor, including the season’s first meeting, 61-52, in Waco on Jan. 2. They will no doubt be aiming for a little revenge while putting their three-game home win streak on the line. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
The Aggies turned it up a notch at home and beat Oklahoma State , 76-61, in Big 12 play last time out, stifling the Cowboys with their defense, limiting them to 37 percent shooting.
A highlight for Texas A&M was the 58 percent shooting that significantly out produced its 44 percent season average.
Elston Turner was the high scorer for the Aggies with 23 points, and was also a factor with a game-leading five assists.
Texas A&M holds a 127-77 advantage in the all-time series, which dates back to the 1914-15 season. The Aggies also lead the series 74-29 in games played in College Station, but the Bears are 2-2 in their last four games at Texas A&M.
Free Pick: Baylor–The Aggies lead the Big 12 in two defensive categories–scoring defense and 3-point FG% defense, as well as ranking second in field-goal percentage defense and defensive rebound percentage, and third in defensive rebounds. However, the Bears are scoring at a clip of nearly 80 ppg, and should have no problem shutting down a mediocre TAM offense.
