A top-25 battle is in store Monday night when the #10 Baylor Bears (24-5, 12-4 Big 12) clash with the #20 Texas Longhorns (21-8, 10-6 Big 12) in a Big 12 conference showdown. In their first meeting, Baylor had no issues defeating Texas, dropping the Longhorns 80-63 earlier this month.
The tip-off for Monday’s tilt is at 9 p.m. EST inside the Frank Erwin Center in Austin, TX. Baylor is a 1.5-point road favorite in the rematch, with the over-under total at 135.5 points.
What to Know – Baylor Bears
Baylor carries a three-game winning streak into the final week of play, highlighted by a statement victory over the Kansas Jayhawks this past weekend. With two games remaining in the regular season, Baylor is just a half-game behind Kansas for the top spot in the Big 12.
The Bears are second in the conference averaging 77.2 points per game while shooting 46.8% from the field and 35.1% from beyond the arc. Baylor is fourth amongst teams in the league, limiting opponents to 63.3 points per game, 42.1% shooting from the floor, and 29.7% from deep.
Trailing by as many as 13-points late in the first half, the Bears rallied to narrow the gap before halftime and pulled away in the second half for an 80-70 triumph over the Jayhawks. Ochai Agbaji led the Jayhawks with 27 points. Christian Braun (17 points, ten rebounds) and David McCormack (10 points, 13 rebounds) collected double-doubles in the victory.
Baylor is 15-13-1 against the spread and 5-5 ATS on the road. The Bears are 3-6 ATS over their last nine games and 1-4 ATS over their previous five against the Longhorns.
What to Know – Texas Longhorns
The Longhorns have won three of their last four games, including two in a row. It might be too little, too late for Texas to make a run at the Big 12 title, but the Longhorns can improve their NCAA seeding with a win over Baylor.
Texas scores 69.1 points per game, fifth in the conference, thanks to 44.9% shooting from the floor and 32.6% from the 3-point line. On defense, the Longhorns surrender a league-best 58.8 points per game, 41.6% shooting from the field, and 31.1% from three.
Timmy Allen scored a team-high 26 points and grabbed ten rebounds, leading Texas to an 82-81 victory over West Virginia on Saturday. Marcus Carr added 15 points, and Jase Febres came off the bench to score 14. Texas was unstoppable on offense, hitting 63.4% of its shots from the field and 8-of-16 attempts from deep.
Texas has a 12-16-1 record ATS and sports a 9-8-1 record ATS. The Longhorns are 1-6 ATS in their last seven home games against the Bears.
The Pick is In
How will Baylor respond after a huge win on Saturday and the quick turnaround? Texas can add another Quad 1 win to their resume and jump from a projected five-seed to a four. However, the defending National Champions are on a mission and will take care of business Monday night in Austin.
Betting Pick: Baylor Bears -1.5
