Fighting Irish vs Bearcats CBB Basketball Spread/Handicapping
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 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
ATS Matchup Stats | Gambling Insight!
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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).
The Wolverines are done touring the MAC and the directional in-state schools. It is time to get to the business of proving they are worth their lofty ranking against the best conference in America.
The Friars are not starting their Big East season from a good place. They have lost their last two games to Boston College and Brown. Both losses were on the road which is where they will be again, unfortunately it is as Louisville the 4th ranked team in the country.
They aren’t dominating teams or the headlines but the Spartans are in good shape entering Big Ten conference play. They have won 6 in a row including a solid victory against Texas on the weekend. The Big Ten is really tough and winning on the road is going to be a challenge.
The Bearcats were cruising along undefeated until getting stunned by New Mexico last week. The Lobos are a good team but it should have been a game the Bearcats win if they are truly a contender this season.
BYU is an under-considered basketball program. Sure they got a lot of attention during the Jimmer era but this is a good program on the whole and their move to the West Coast Conference forces them to play good competition all season long.
This is always a highly anticipated game with last year’s brouhaha only adding to the lore of the series.
The Hawks may not be the favourite but many expect them to compete in the challenging Atlantic 10 conference this season. To date they have put the conference on notice by beating a very good Notre Dame team and losses to Florida State and Creighton are nothing to be ashamed of.
The Wolfpack haven’t played in a week since losing at Michigan in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. The loss was their second in their last three outings which is opening up some pretty big questions about this supposed National Championship contender.
A lot is expected of the N.C. State program this year and so far they haven’t delivered much. They got hammered by an Oklahoma State team that features a couple of great players already but I am more distressed by a near home loss to UNC-Asheville.
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Super Bowl XLVI is upon us and really, we could not have asked for a better matchup – a rematch of what was widely considered the best NFL Championship game ever played.
Many thought the Kansas Jayhawks would have be in rebuilding mode this year, but Bill Self and Thomas Robinson had other ideas. The Jayhawks are coming off a blowout victory of Baylor earlier this week.
The Michigan Wolverines swept the season series last year over Michigan State. Tom Izzo’s Spartans team was quite disappointing last year, but he seems to have the type of players he wants in his system this year.