We're back in West Virginia for the second week in a row. Last week, West Virginia fell to Kansas, possibly the best team in the nation. This week's opponent, Texas, is a major step down.
Life in the Big 12 hasn't been kind to West Virginia in its inaugural season in the conference, as the Mountaineers are just 3-5 in Big 12 play. Bob Huggins' teams typically play great defense but sometimes have a difficult time scoring -- and this team is no different. Aaric Murray is averaging 10.1 points per game, and he leads the team.
Texas has lost six of its past eight games, which likely means bettors everywhere won't even get the opportunity to wager against Rick Barnes in the NCAA tournament (that's usually a standard automatic play).
These teams played on Jan. 9 with West Virginia winning in overtime, the first time the schools had ever met as conference foes. One bright spot for Texas this season has been its defense; the Longhorns are holding opponents to a .360 shooting percentage, fourth lowest in the nation.
Teddy Covers says: "I lost a bet supporting Texas when these two teams hooked up in Austin last month; a particularly frustrating defeat for the young Longhorns (not to mention my bankroll). Rick Barnes' squad blew a 10-point lead at home in the final three and a half minutes of regulation. In overtime, Texas missed all six of its shot attempts and committed a pair of turnovers. West Virginia won the game in straight-up fashion despite shooting a woeful 30.6 percent from the floor, including a 3-for-23 performance from 3-point range.
"Both teams have struggled in Big 12 play since that first meeting. Bob Huggins' Mountaineers have managed only two wins in their past seven games -- against the two weakest teams in the conference -- Texas Tech and TCU. And WVU Coliseum hasn't exactly been a house of horrors for visitors. The Mountaineers have lost three out of four at home in conference action, and they've covered only four point spreads in their past 16 lined games on this floor.
"The Longhorns' two Big 12 victories came against the same two Big 12 bottom-feeders that West Virginia beat. They've yet to win a road game straight-up this year, although they have covered point spreads in 'closer than expected' losses at Michigan State, Baylor and Oklahoma in recent tries. This team is so young -- all 10 players in Barnes' rotation are either freshman or sophomores -- that their road struggles are certainly understandable.
"The Longhorns take bad shots and struggle with turnovers. Their three leading scorers -- guards Sheldon McClellan, Julien Lewis and Javan Felix -- combine to shoot well under 40 percent from the floor. But West Virginia can't match the Longhorns' interior size; consistently struggling on the boards, only Murray averages more than five rebounds or one blocked shot per game. The Mountaineers don't have a go-to guy offensively with seven players that average between 7 and 10 points per game. And six of those seven guys are hitting at 43 percent or less from the floor; bad news against a Longhorns defense that ranks No. 2 in the country in defensive field goal percentage allowed.
"This is not an easy game to pick, and it's certainly not one of my stronger 'Big Monday' opinions. West Virginia deserves to be favored here, but I don't trust them to win by any sort of margin in a 'meaningful revenge' situation for the road underdog."
I'm going to lay off of the total b/c I think it's spot on after further investigation...but I really like Texas +6.5...even more now after this article
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ESPN INSIDERS: Can someone post the Gold:Betting Big Monday article please?
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