Big 12 basketball odds – Texas is the favorite
Posted on 11/5/2008 4:27:14 PM
By Washington Tucker
College basketball betting: Can Kansas repeat?
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Texas leads the way in the Big 12
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How will Kansas respond as National Champion?
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Is Baylor for real?
The Big 12 wasn’t exactly deep last season, but it is top-heavy. Kansas was the cream of the crop in the NCAA Tournament, winning its third-ever title. This year, though, the Jayhawks aren’t expected to be serious players in the Big 12 basketball odds.
Kansas (+650) won a school record 37 games last season but there are no starters back. Guard Sherron Collins, one of the first guys off the bench last year, is now going to be counted upon greatly. The bottom line is that Kansas is rebuilding and it just doesn’t have the tools for another Big 12 basketball odds payoff.
The frontrunner in the Big 12 will be Texas as sportsbook odds list them as the favorite at +250. Texas won a school-record 31 games last season and made an Elite Eight appearance before losing to Memphis.
For a second straight season, Texas will have to replace an All-American as D.J. Augustin now plays in the NBA. But with four starters returning, Texas will have plenty of scoring and experience back. Texas is the clear favorite in Big 12 basketball odds.
Second place in Big 12 basketball lines, according to sportsbook odds, belongs to Oklahoma (+300), which is led by future Top-10 NBA Draft pick Blake Griffin. With four returning starters in total, this could be a very dangerous team not only in the Big 12 but in the 2009 March Madness tournament as well.
One team to keep an eye on is Baylor (+500), which has made quite the turnaround under head coach Scott Drew. It seems like not so long ago that Baylor was a complete disaster under head coach Dave Bliss, who sullied the program with all sorts of shady activities.
But after Baylor reached the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 20 years there’s plenty of optimism with four starters returning. This will be the best Baylor squad in a long time and sportsbook odds reflect that, though the question remains: can it meet those expectations, which is something up and coming teams often struggle to do.
WASHINGTON’S PICK: Although Texas is the favorite, take a shot with the value and bet on Oklahoma and its experience to win the Big 12 basketball odds.
For more unique insight into college basketball betting and analysis of the Big 12 basketball odds, check out Washington Tucker’s writing in the BetOnline.com Betting Edge.
Washington
Tucker was practically raised at Rucker Park. Though a freak knee injury cost
him a major college basketball scholarship, his “sixth-sense” on the hardwood
has translated into a spectacular career in basketball handicapping. Email
Comments@BetOnline.com.
