{"id":10640,"date":"2011-03-08T18:28:24","date_gmt":"2011-03-08T18:28:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.joeduffy.net\/blog\/?p=10640"},"modified":"2011-03-08T18:28:24","modified_gmt":"2011-03-08T18:28:24","slug":"big-12-preview-predictions-picks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.joeduffy.net\/blog\/2011\/03\/big-12-preview-predictions-picks\/","title":{"rendered":"Big 12 Preview, Predictions Picks"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Big 12 may not have the depth of the Big East or the rivalries of the Big Ten but it still has some serious national title contenders with teams like Kansas, Texas and Kansas State. So the Big 12 Tournament will still get plenty of sports betting<\/a> action. Let\u2019s take a look at the hopefuls and make a pick.<\/p>\n

KANSAS JAYHAWKS (29-2)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sportsbook odds: -200<\/p>\n

It should come as no surprise at all to see the No.2 Kansas Jayhawks favored to win the Big 12 tourney. Bill Self\u2019s boys know how to shoot the lights out. No one does it better. At 51.8 per cent from the field, Kansas is the nation\u2019s top shooting team. It\u2019s no wonder the Jayhawks are also fifth with 82.7 points per game. The Morrises, Marcus and Markieff, both shoot just under 60 per cent. Amazing.<\/p>\n

KANSAS STATE (22-9)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sportsbook<\/a> odds: +250<\/p>\n

Here I was thinking Kansas State would be a sleeper, but the oddsmakers are ahead of the game. The Wildcats couldn\u2019t hide anymore after their outstanding late-season run that included wins over Kansas and Texas (at Texas). Jacob Pullen has been a man on a mission for this team down the stretch. Arguably, no team carries more momentum into the Big 12 tournament.<\/p>\n

TEXAS LONGHORNS (25-6)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sportsbook odds: +350<\/p>\n

If it weren\u2019t for Kansas State going crazy over the last month, Texas would\u2019ve been the consensus top challenger to Kansas for the Big 12 crown. After all, the Longhorns beat Kansas earlier this season. You could also argue that Texas has the conference\u2019s best pure scorer in Jordan Hamilton. The Longhorns were popular in college basketball betting<\/a> circles this year, leading the Big 12 with an 18-8 ATS record.<\/p>\n

TEXAS A&M AGGIES (23-7)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sportsbook odds: +650<\/p>\n

Unlike the Big East, in which every team seems to have 20 wins and a shot at the tournament crown, only a handful of Big 12 teams are taken seriously. Texas A&M is probably the last of that group, and even the Aggies are a stretch. They\u2019re a fine defensive squad, ranking 15th<\/sup> in the nation with 60.4 points allowed per game, but their offense leaves a lot to be desired. Texas A&M also seemed to fall flat on its face every time it matched up against a good Big 12 team, especially away from home. So I wouldn\u2019t waste a bet on the Aggies if I were you.<\/p>\n

THE PICK<\/strong><\/p>\n

It\u2019s no coincindence that this preview is shorter than my Big East preview. To me, recommending or even discussing anyone besides the top four teams in the Big 12 would be steering you in the wrong direction. Actually, you shouldn\u2019t get caught picking anyone other than Kansas, Kansas State or Texas.<\/p>\n

I like the All-Kansas rivalry to be the deciding factor here. Kansas State is playing the best basketball in the Big 12 right now and Kansas knows how to win better than anyone else. I think that experience (and coaching edge) will be enough to put the Jayhawks over the top…barely.<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s free pick<\/a>: Kansas -250<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Big 12 may not have the depth of the Big East or the rivalries of the Big Ten but it still has some serious national title contenders with teams like Kansas, Texas and Kansas State. So the Big 12 Tournament will still get plenty of sports betting action. Let\u2019s take a look at the … Continue reading Big 12 Preview, Predictions Picks<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10640","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sports_betting_news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.joeduffy.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10640","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.joeduffy.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.joeduffy.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.joeduffy.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.joeduffy.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10640"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.joeduffy.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10640\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10642,"href":"https:\/\/www.joeduffy.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10640\/revisions\/10642"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.joeduffy.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10640"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.joeduffy.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10640"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.joeduffy.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10640"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}