The Baylor Bears have been one of the most impressive teams in the country and will aim to keep it rolling in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge. Baylor will travel to face off against the Ole Miss Rebels.
Baylor may have to hit the road but the team is so impressive that there’s no question it will be favored in this one. Ole Miss has struggled as the competition has gotten harder of late and will be hard-pressed to win this one. The Rebels’ more realistic path will be a cover of the spread, in which they should get a handful of points.
Don't miss the hardwood action from the Pavilion at Ole Miss in Oxford, Mississippi at 6 p.m. ET on Saturday, January 28, 2017. Catch every moment of the game live on ESPN2.
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Baylor is 18-1 straight up and 9-7 against the spread. The Bears have played in four true road games this season and have done well, covering in three of them. Baylor has been favored in all but three games this season. It is 7-6 against the spread when giving points.
Ole Miss is 12-7 straight up and 10-8-1 against the spread. The Rebels have played in 11 home games this season and have only covered in four of them. Ole Miss has been really good as the underdog, covering in six of seven matchups.
Lookahead Situation
Baylor must try to keep its focus on this game, even though it full knows what’s coming down the pike next time out. The Bears will travel to play Kansas in the game following Ole Miss, in an epic clash of top-5 teams that are tied atop the Big 12.
The Bears will be on the road for that one and will be the underdogs, but have the capability to win because of all the talent on the roster. However, they can’t afford to look toward that one until this game is over.
It makes it even harder since the game against the Rebels is not a conference matchup. If Baylor is uninspired or otherwise performing poorly, the idea of Kansas next time out could be a legitimate reason.
Player to Watch
Sebastian Saiz -- The Ole Miss forward is a double-double machine. Saiz is averaging 15.4 points, 11.5 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game. He is shooting 50.5 percent from the field and is one of the team’s leading scorers.
Saiz has steadily improved in his four years with the team, now becoming one of the key players on the roster. He had 19 points and seven rebounds last time out in a close loss to Texas A&M and registered double-doubles in the previous three games against Missouri, Tennessee and South Carolina.
Baylor will aim to keep him off the boards, but it’s not an easy task.
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The Bears are clearly the superior team, but have to remain focused throughout. It seems likely that they jump out to a lead but kick it into cruise control too early.
The Bears are led by Johnathan Motley, who needs to have a big game while matching up against Saiz. If Baylor let’s off the gas too soon, Ole Miss should be able to rally back and hang around.
The Rebels don’t have the type of high-end talent to pull off this upset, but Baylor may have to sweat it out more than desired. In the end, the Bears will come away with the victory but keep an eye on the spread because Ole Miss may be able to pull out a backdoor cover depending on how many points they are given.
College Basketball Odds: Baylor 73, Ole Miss 66
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