Fresh off giving the Baylor Bears a major scare in Waco, the Texas Tech Red Raiders return home to Lubbock looking to close the regular season out with a bang by taking down a Kansas Jayhawks squad that’s already at the very least guaranteed itself a share of the Big 12 regular season title. With that, just how determined will Bill Self’s squad be to put forth a max effort and take Chris Beard’s kids down in front of its rabid fan base. My guess is not so much, but the Jayhawks have put forth some surprising efforts in spots all season long. Be that as it may, games recently played in Lubbock between these squads have been closely contested with two of the last three being decided by an average of 1.5 points per game. The other saw Tech win by 29 last season, and I wouldn’t be shocked if a similar one-sided result played out Saturday afternoon!
This crucial Big 12 throw down takes place on Saturday, March 7, 2020 with tip-off set for 2 p.m. ET from United Supermarkets Arena in Lubbock, TX. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN.
Odds Analysis
KU took one step closer towards sewing up the regular season Big 12 title all to themselves on Wednesday night when they toppled the TCU Horned Frogs by a 75-66 final count. Unfortunately for those that laid the 16.5-points with the Jayhawks, the final margin of victory wasn’t enough to cover the closing number at online sportsbooks. With that, Devon Dotson and his mates have now failed to cover two straight games after coming up short in Manhattan over the weekend against Kansas State. Before that, Self’s kids had rattled off six straight pointspread covers. Three of those took place on the road including Waco against Baylor. Kansas will invade Lubbock a rock solid 9-1 SU away from Lawrence having covered all but two of those matchups against the closing college basketball odds.
Losers of two straight as favorites to both Oklahoma and Texas, not many gave the Red Raiders much of a shot to hang with Baylor on Big Monday; regardless of linemakers hanging a noticeably short number for the Bears to cover. The underlay no doubt set alarms off as the matchup was one of the bigger Pro vs. Joe battles of the season with the former taking the points and the latter laying ‘em. Never once did Baylor exhibit the ability to cover the impost in that game. Having already gotten its salad tossed by the Bears once this season, Texas Tech made adjustments and hung all the way through. Not having Mark Vital to deal with also played a major role. Though it ultimately ended up falling in overtime by a 71-68 final count, the Red Raiders went on to cover and now return home looking to improve their 13-3 SU and 7-9 ATS records as hosts.
Player to Watch
Jahmi’us Ramsey filled the stat sheet when these teams collided in the Phog back on February 1 when the Jayhawks escaped with the 78-75 win and non-cover as 8.5-point favorites. The freshman went on to lead all scorers with 26 points with most of his damage being done from beyond the arc (5/8) and free throw line (5/6). Texas Tech’s ability to hit the 3-ball allowed for it to stick close to the Jayhawks all the way through even though Kansas shot much better overall from the field. The Red Raiders ended up knocking down 9-of-21 long range shots which allowed it to get by losing the rebounding battle by eight caroms. It’s ability to create 18 free throw attempts was also impressive with Ramsey and his mates constantly streaking to the basket putting pressure on KU’s bigs; Azubuike and McCormack combined for just 11 points and 6 fouls. Texas Tech just saw its four-game home win streak snapped by Texas in a game that saw the Longhorns dominate the second half. Look for Ramsey and company to make it a point to rise up in their final showing of the season in Lubbock and put on a show for the home crowd.
Prediction
I’ll be all over the Red Raiders plus the points pre-game just like I was when these teams collided in Lawrence at the beginning of February. But I won’t stop there! Should West Virginia run away with its game against Baylor earlier in the day, I’ll be looking to take more positions out on the Red Raiders be it with live in-game wagering of for the second half. Kansas has absolutely nothing to gain and everything to lose by going all-out to win this game. Just how important is the regular season title anyway? They already own at least a share of it. The Red Raiders likely want off the 8/9 line, and a win in this spot should do the trick.
College Basketball Pick: Texas Tech 72, Kansas 60
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