Kansas Oklahoma Betting – Deep Jayhawks Wear Out Sooners
Kansas has been one of the sports betting favorites all season when it comes to winning the NCAA Tournament, and it’s not only due to their talent, but their depth is unmatched in the country as well. On Saturday, the Jayhawks will head to Oklahoma to face a young Sooners squad who will be up for the fight, but eventually Kansas will pull away on the road.
- What: NCAA Basketball Betting
- When: Saturday, February 26th, 4:00 PM ET
- Where: Lloyd Noble Center, Norman, OK
- Pick: Kansas Jayhawks
Why Bet On Kansas (26-2, 11-2 Big 12)
The No.3 Jayhawks are one of the few teams that could lose their starting point guard and keep on going (with all due respect to Duke) as they rolled over Oklahoma State by 27 points at home on Monday. Sophomore Elijah Johnson had a solid game with junior Tyshawn Taylor suspended and freshman Josh Selby nursing a sore ankle/foot, and that is Kansas’ major weapon; they are deeper than any team in the country. It’s tough to find any holes in the Jayhawks’ game as they lead the nation in field-goal percentage, they’re fourth in points scored, 15th in field-goal defense, second in assists and 16th in assist-to-turnover ratio. Kansas is solid inside with the Morris brothers, Marcus (17.1 points, 6.9 rebounds) and Markieff (13.4 points, 8.4 rebounds), and they’re shooting 39.2% from the three-point line. While the defense is 80th in points allowed, as we noted earlier by their field-goal defense, the Jayhawks will make you work for it and that can wear you down.
The only major concern we have with Kansas is their free-throw shooting as the Jayhawks are 233rd in the country at the line, shooting 66.8%. You really can’t fault the Jayhawks for either of their losses, as the Texas loss came at the end of an emotional week due to the death of sophomore forward Thomas Robinson’s mother. The Kansas State loss was a rivalry game on the road and the Wildcats’ Jacob Pullen wouldn’t be stopped. It wouldn’t be a stretch to say Kansas is the best team in the country and they haven’t really been at 100% all season.
Why Bet On Oklahoma (12-14, 4-8 Big 12)
It’s tough to find any reason to bet on the Sooners in this game as they’re on a five-game losing skid, and it could be six as they head to Texas Tech on Wednesday night. But the Sooners do have a few things going for them. They shoot well from the field, coming in 85th in the country at 45.6%, and at the foul line, hitting 73.1% of their trips to the charity stripe. People also forget that the Sooners were recently on probation due to violations from the Kelvin Sampson regime, meaning that coach Jeff Capel is just trying to keep the program together, but he has some good young players after senior guard Cade Davis (12.7 points, 5.1 rebounds) leaves Norman.
Sophomore forward Andrew Fitzgerald (13.5 points, 5.2 rebounds), sophomore guard Steven Pledger (11.8 points, 2.2 rebounds) and freshman swingman Cameron Clark (9.6 points, 4.7 rebounds) will improve as they get older. Also, Oklahoma’s best chance to win comes at home, where the kids are more comfortable, but we’re not sure their homecourt advantage will stand up against the Jayhawks.
But right now, the Sooners are pretty awful because of their inexperience. They’re 239th in points scored, 183rd in points allowed, 253rd in field-goal defense, 219th in rebound margin…and the numbers don’t get much better from there. The Sooners have some depth in their ranks, but that is due to a lack of talent more than anything.
How The Game Will Play Out
There is no way that the Sooners will be favored by NCAA basketball betting odds in this game, even though they’re 4-4 ATS at home, while the Jayhawks are 4-5 ATS on the road, but Kansas has yet to be an underdog in any game this season. The Jayhawks are 3-2 SU and 2-3 ATS in their last five trips to Oklahoma, so you do have to pay attention to how large the line is because the Sooners may be hang to with the Jayhawks for the first half, or part of the first 20 minutes. But Kansas has too much depth and talent, and it’ll take the game of their lives for the Sooners to pull off this upset, but it’s tough when the Jayhawks’ bench is likely better than Oklahoma’s starters. Take the Jayhawks in your weekend Bonline betting picks.
Kansas Oklahoma Betting Pick: Kansas Jayhawks
