The Baylor Bears are just a different team away from Waco, Tex. They've lost their three road games against opponents ranked in the top 25 when they played them by 54 points combined. They face another road challenge Saturday against No. 13 Iowa State. The Bears must prove they can handle the road in Big 12 play.
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HOW THE BAYLOR BEARS CAN COVER THE SPREAD
Baylor is an experienced team that loves to share the basketball. They're also a team that can blast inferior opponents but has struggled against some of the elite. The Bears' 102-74 loss at Kansas last Saturday helped vault the Jayhawks into the No. 1 ranking.
There's no shame in losing to a team like Kansas, especially on the road, but if Baylor wants to be a player in the Big 12, wins over higher-regarded teams are necessary. The Bears get another crack Saturday when they visit No. 13 Iowa State.
It's really simple for Scott Drew's team. We all know the Bears are talented. The foursome of double-figure scorers Rico Gathers, Taurean Prince, Al Freeman and Johnathan Motley should keep them in most games. But they are a different team when they take to the road.
Gathers is the key to Baylor's success. He returned to Waco for his senior season to cement his legacy and he's well on his way. He helped the Bears dominate the glass on Tuesday hauling down 17 boards to become the first Baylor player with 1,000 career rebounds.
HOW THE IOWA STATE CYCLONES CAN COVER THE SPREAD
A stunning loss to Northern Iowa before Christmas was a setback for the Cyclones, but they regrouped and nearly took down one of the top teams in the country to open Big 12 play. Iowa State took Oklahoma to the limit last Saturday before falling 87-83, missing on a potential game-winning three-pointer with 5.8 seconds remaining.
Georges Niang and Jameel McKay are two of the best big men in the nation and they have the Cyclones playing well. At 6-foo-8 Niang is an offensive threat in the paint and beyond the three-point line. McKay, at 6-9, runs the court, lives to convert lob passes into dunks and swats aside shots at the defensive end. Needless to say, Iowa State goes as these two go.
You don't get to 12-2 and ranked 13th in the country with just a two-man game, though. Guard Monte Morris is having a stellar season, leading the Big 12 in assists and assist-to-turnover ratio. His adept ball-handling opens the floor for the bigs, but he keeps defenses honest by averaging 13.8 points per game.
The homecourt edge is also big for the Cyclones, who have won nine in a row at Hilton Coliseum since Baylor ended a 21-game home winning streak last season.
ANALYSIS AND ODDS PREDICTION
Baylor won in Ames last season, the only team to do that in the last 31 games at Hilton Coliseum. So the Bears do have that going for them. But they haven't been able to match that this season with their three road losses all against ranked foes and not particularly close. Iowa State will have some added motivation to avenge that loss but needs to be stronger on the glass. The Cyclones had an opportunity for the upset of Oklahoma last weekend but allowed too many offensive rebounds and second-chance points. Baylor likes the inside game, pounding the ball down low with Gathers and Prince. They'll have to be better than Iowa State's duo of Niang and McKay to have any chance of getting the road upset, and that's going to be hard to do.
Iowa State 81, Baylor 74
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