We could assume that West Virginia might overlook Texas with a showdown against Oklahoma looming. But the Mountaineers were humbled at home as a 12-point favorite by the Longhorns last month. It’s hard to win on the road in the Big 12 and overlooking anyone could be a fatal mistake.
You can bet on college basketball odds at BookMaker.eu every day of the season.
HOW THE WEST VIRGINIA MOUNTAINEERS CAN COVER THE SPREAD
West Virginia was beaten at its own game last time out against the Longhorns. Texas pressed the Mountaineers, pulling off the 56-49 upset in Morgantown. The expectation would be that WVU is seeking revenge from that stirring home loss.
The Mountaineers split four games with Jonathan Holton serving a suspension and his return to the lineup ignited a typical WVU performance. Holton gave the team a scoring and rebounding weapon, and he led a defense that forced 26 turnovers in a rout of TCU on Saturday. The senior played only 18 minutes Saturday but contributed 14 points, seven rebounds and five assists.
His impact was felt on the defensive side of the ball as well, as the Mountaineers held the Horned Frogs to 33.3 percent shooting, harassing them into several desperation attempts as the shot clock would down and converting the turnovers into 26 points.
The defense remains stingy, which allowed the Mountaineers to beat Baylor and Iowa State last week while dropping TCU. However, coach Bob Huggins is looking for his team to show improvement shooting the basketball. WVU connected on 37.3 percent from the floor in a loss to Kansas and hit just 37.5 percent against the Horned Frogs.
HOW THE TEXAS LONGHORNS CAN COVER THE SPREAD
Getting back to the Erwin Center is a step in the right direction for the Longhorns, who lost at Oklahoma and Iowa State last week, just when it looked like they were ready to become legitimate contenders in the conference.
Those losses were a serious blow to Texas’ chances of claiming the Big 12, but the Longhorns have games remaining with the three NCAAB teams above them in the standings, and all three are at home, starting Tuesday with West Virginia. The Horns also host Oklahoma and Kansas at the end of the month.
It’s taken a while for coach Shaka Smart’s havoc style of aggressive defense and up-tempo offense to gain traction and the Longhorns have shaken off a slow start to join the hunt. They’ve also overcome the loss of Cameron Ridley, who averaged 12.7 points and 10.0 rebounds before going down with a foot injury in December.
The Longhorns displayed Smart’s trademark style in upsetting the Mountaineers 56-49 in Morgantown on Jan. 20. They held WVU to 31.1 percent shooting, including 14.3 percent from beyond the arc. More importantly, Isaiah Taylor was masterful handling the press. He needs to be again for Texas to entertain any thoughts of a sweep.
ANALYSIS AND ODDS PREDICTION
Texas won outright at West Virginia as a 12-point underdog when the teams met on Jan. 20 and beat the Mountaineers with their own havoc style of defense. That type of play has propelled the Longhorns to the top half of the Big 12 standings. Isaiah Taylor runs the offense to near perfection, tossing in over 15 points per game while leading a defense that tops the Big 12 in opponent field goal percentage. The major concern with Texas is inconsistent play. The Horns were locked in against the Mountaineers last month and had another huge road win at Baylor. But they’ve also had puzzling losses to Texas Tech and TCU. That leads us to believe they haven’t arrived just yet. West Virginia sits atop the league standings and has a date with Oklahoma following this one. Don’t expect the Mountaineers to overlook the Longhorns, especially after what happened in Morgantown back in January.
West Virginia 63, Texas 59
BookMaker offers play-by-play betting odds for live sporting events every day! The user-friendly wagering interface on your smartphone provides an easy way to place bets on the go. 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 Texas Longhorns will go down Tuesday, February 16, 2016 at 7 p.m. ET at the Frank Erwin Center. The matchup will be televised live on ESPN2.
