College Basketball Predictions: Can TCU upset West Virginia? 1/22/18
The featured game of Big Monday tonight has No. 24 TCU playing host to No. 6 West Virginia at 9PM ET on ESPN. Here’s our College Basketball Predictions for this game.
ODDS
According to oddsmakers at Bovada.lv, West Virginia is the slight favorite on the road, as the Mountaineers are getting odds of -2.5 points against TCU. The over/under total for the game is listed at 159 points. Tonight’s game takes place from the Ed and Rae Schollmaier Arena in Fort Worth, Texas and will air live on ESPN.
WEST VIRGINIA
West Virginia put an end to a two-game losing streak this weekend with an 86-51 win over Texas. WVU is now 16-3 overall, 5-2 in the Big 12 and 8-7 against the spread. The Mountaineers are defensive heavy, allowing just 64.9 points per game this year. Offensively, WVU handles itself well, putting up 81.5 per game. Jevon Carter has been leading the team with 16.9 points, 5.2 rebounds, 6.4 assists and 3.3 steals per game. Esa Ahmad is adding 13.7 points and 6 rebounds per game in his short time back from injury.
TCU
TCU has struggled in Big 12 play, losing a lot of competitive games. The Horned Frogs are coming off a 73-68 loss at Kansas State this weekend. TCU is now 14-5 overall, 2-5 in the Big 12 and 9-9 against the spread. The Horned Frogs are averaging 87.5 points per game this season while allowing 77.6 per contest. TCU suffered a big blow recently, losing Jaylen Fisher for the season with a knee injury. He averages 12.3 points and 5.4 assists per game. Vladimir Brodziansky is leading the team with 15.4 points per game while Kenrich Williams is adding 14.7 points and 9.4 rebounds per game.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL PREDICTIONS
West Virginia has dominated this series, winning 10 straight meetings with TCU. The Mountaineers are 6-4 against the spread in those 10 games. TCU has played teams tough, but the loss of Fisher will really hurt, especially tonight. He was an experienced player for the Horned Frogs and could handle the ball as well. WVU’s press defense will expose the loss for the Horned Frogs, as they won’t have the ball handlers to deal with it consistently. The public betting is strongly with West Virginia on the road and I agree with them.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL PREDICTIONS: WEST VIRGINIA -2.5
