The Texas A&M Aggies were nearly upset in Starkville the first time they played against the Mississippi State Bulldogs. Fresh off of two big wins in a row, the Aggies will hope to continue their run towards a great seed in the dance in their second clash with the Dogs on Wednesday night.
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HOW THE MISSISSIPPI STATE BULLDOGS CAN COVER THE SPREAD
Mississippi State has pulled off two upsets in a row and should be looked upon as live after taking out Vandy and Alabama in successive games, though winning on the road against a borderline Top 25 team is far different than either of those games.
Gavin Ware has been all over the place for Mississippi State this year. He's going to be absolutely vital in this one, as the key to beating the Aggies comes in the frontcourt. The reason Kentucky couldn't ultimately hold on to a win it should've had in College Station is because it just couldn't rebound the basketball.
Not only is Ware Mississippi State's leading scorer at 15.9 points per game, but he shoots the ball incredibly well at 62.5 percent and is its leading rebounder at 7.3 per game as well. He doesn't have a heck of a lot of help in the paint, and that's why the Bulldogs are only just barely outrebounding teams this year.
HOW THE TEXAS A&M AGGIES CAN COVER THE SPREAD
We'd be lying if we said we weren't concerned at all about this spot for Texas A&M. It's a good thing that there isn't a massive game coming ahead of this one, as there's only a date with lowly Mizzou on the horizon. However, we're not keen to the fact that the overtime win on Saturday over Kentucky just occurred.
The few days off should help ground the Aggies, but it's surely a concern.
Tyler Davis and Jalen Jones were dominant in the low block against Kentucky on Saturday combining for 39 points and 20 rebounds. If they're contained though, the Bulldogs will be live in this game. If they show up again in this one and both threaten double-doubles, the coast should be clear for the hosts.
ANALYSIS AND ODDS PREDICTION
Under bettors got really unlucky in that A&M/Kentucky game over the weekend. The OT period featured 20 points, and that was the difference between the game staying under the total of 141.5 and flying past it with ease.
As it stands, we're not shying away from the under here either. There were only 121 points on the board when these two played the first time, and the under is 10-2 in A&M's last 12 games overall.
Mississippi State can score if it gets the ball down in the paint for sure. The Bulldogs shoot 53 percent from inside the arc and hit 72.5 percent of their foul shots. However, they also tend to get a little three happy from time to time, a strategy which probably won't work against the Aggies in College Station.
If the Bulldogs don't get their acts together in this one and dominate in the paint, they're sure to be beaten soundly.
Texas A&M 69, Mississippi State 58
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Real-time spreads, totals, props and moneyline odds are all available by clicking here, so start betting with BookMaker today! The game between the Mississippi State Bulldogs and the Texas A&M Aggies is scheduled for Wednesday, February 24, 2016 at 7:00 p.m. ET at Reed Arena. Catch the game live on ESPN2.
