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College Basketball

WVU at Oklahoma State

VegasInsider Staff
VegasInsider Staff Sports Betting Expert
2 minute read
The first Monday in January is rather quiet when it comes to betting college basketball. However, there is one big matchup in the Big 12 that should capture some attention.

As the featured game on ESPN2, the No. 16 West Virginia Mountaineers travel to Stillwater to square off against the Oklahoma State Cowboys.

No. 16 West Virginia at Oklahoma State
(ESPN2, 9:00 p.m. ET)

Opening Odds: Wet Virginia -2, Total 136

Betting Matchup

West Virginia came up short against No. 3 Kansas in its Big 12 opener on Saturday in a 60-53 loss. Yet, the Mountaineers did cover as 10-point road underdogs. This was just their second straight-up loss on the year against 11 victories. They are 7-6 against the spread after covering in four of their last five contests. The total stayed UNDER 141 ½ points in Saturday’s loss and it has stayed UNDER in 10 of West Virginia’s 13 games this season.

Prior to Saturday’s loss to Kansas, West Virginia stunned then-No. 2 Ohio State 67-59 as a six-point road underdog on Dec. 29 to close out nonconference play. Freshman forward Oscar Tshiebwe only played eight minutes of that game before posting 17 points and 17 rebounds in Saturday’s losing effort. He is averaging 12.2 points and 9.4 rebounds a game. The Mountaineers took a six-point lead against Kansas into halftime before getting outscored 36-23 in the second half. They are averaging 73.2 points a game while allowing 61.8 points a game on defense.

The Cowboys opened Big 12 play by getting hammered by No. 22 Texas Tech 85-50 closing as 5 ½-point underdogs on the road. This was their fourth loss in their last six games (SU and ATS) after starting the season with seven victories in a row. They have a 2-5 record ATS in seven previous home games this season. The total has gone OVER in four of Oklahoma State’s last six games after going OVER 130 points in Saturday’s lopsided loss.

Senior guard Lindy Watters III is the Cowboys’ leading scorer with 12.9 points per game. He is just one of four players scoring in double figures on a lineup that is averaging 70.3 PPG. Oklahoma State is shooting 41.9 percent from the field and 31.3 percent from three-point range. It connected on just 28.8 percent of its shots from the field in Saturday’s loss while going 9-for-27 from outside the three-point line.

Betting Trends

-- The Mountaineers are 5-15 SU in over their last 20 games on the road with a 4-10 record ATS in their last 14 road games. The total has stayed UNDER in five of their last six games played away from home.

-- The Cowboys have won six of their last nine home games SU but they fall 5-9 ATS over their last 15 games played at home. They are 5-2 ATS in their last seven Big 12 games with the total going OVER the closing line in five of those contests.

-- Oklahoma State won both meetings last season both SU and ATS. The Cowboys are now 4-1 ATS over the last five games in this matchup. The total has gone OVER the closing number in the last four meetings.

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