Four days after knocking off the No. 1 team in the country, West Virginia gets a shot at No. 2 Oklahoma with the top spot in the national polls on the line. The winner of this game likely will be the new No. 1 team next week, and as the Mountaineers know, winning on the road in the Big 12 is tough to do.
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HOW THE WEST VIRGINIA MOUNTAINEERS CAN COVER THE SPREAD
Tuesday’s 74-63 win over No. 1 Kansas was the first time West Virginia beat the nation’s top ranked team since 1983, and it was how the Mountaineers did it that is drawing all the attention. Despite shooting just 33.3 percent, they won the way they usually do: through their aggression, energy and hard-nosed play.
WVU was able to take its style of basketball right to one of the most talented teams in the country and made Kansas wilt under its relentless pressure. If the Mountaineers can do this to the Jayhawks, they might be able to do this to anyone.
Like last season, the Mountaineers suffocate opponents with sheer effort and a never-ending rotation of fresh legs. But unlike a season ago, they can beat teams by simply having better players.
Jevon Carter has adjusted to his full-time point guard role and Jaysean Paige is a pure scorer. There are few big men in the country who can match the strength and physicality of Devin Williams, who leads the team in scoring and rebounding while shooting better than 52 percent from the floor. And they all take pride in playing defense and running teams ragged.
HOW THE OKLAHOMA SOONERS CAN COVER THE SPREAD
One area of concern surrounding the Sooners recently is their number of turnovers, which has been uncommonly high for them. After committing 19 turnovers against Kansas State last weekend, OU turned the ball over 20 times against Oklahoma State on Wednesday, and it came perilously close to costing the Sooners the game.
This stat raises some eyebrows, especially with West Virginia up next. The Mountaineers’ 40-minutes-of-havoc defense leads the nation with 20 forced turnovers per game. The Sooners must take better care of the basketball against WVU’s press if they are going to win and secure the top spot in the polls.
OU will put the basketball in the hands of Buddy Hield, and why not, he’s a sensational player when on his game, which is most of time, and virtually unstoppable on offense. The Sooners’ National Player of the Year candidate is also human. Though he dropped 26 points on OSU, his second half was forgettable. Hield scored just six points in the final 20 minutes with as many turnovers.
If the Hield we saw in Kansas shows up, the Sooners will win. But he will need help from Jordan Woodard and Isaiah Cousins to crack WVU’s press and get into half court sets. When they do that, the offense will take over.
ANALYSIS AND ODDS PREDICTION
West Virginia survived two scares on the road to open Big 12 play, beating Kansas State in overtime and squeaking by TCU, teams at the bottom of the conference standings. The Mountaineers also allowed over 80 points in each of those games, so their undefeated start hasn’t been without some nail-biting moments. A strong case could be made for Oklahoma being the best team in the country. After all, their only loss was that triple-overtime classic in Lawrence where the Sooners had plenty of opportunities to get a victory before eventually falling by three points. The Sooners are good, and they’re better than WVU. Playing at home gives them an added edge that results in an OU victory.
Oklahoma 73, West Virginia 62
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Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute, so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker Sportsbook! The matchup between the West Virginia Mountaineers and Oklahoma Sooners will go down Saturday, January 16, 2016 at 4 p.m. ET at the Lloyd Noble Center. The matchup will be televised live on ESPN2.
