Conference play is getting interesting in men’s college basketball, as teams start to see each other for a second time, focused on building their resume for March Madness, or at least trying to peak for a conference tournament run that would get them one of those automatic bids to the Big Dance. West Virginia went to Baylor and almost knocked off the eighth-ranked Bears but faltered late, losing by four. If you want to add college hoops to your online betting for the week, think about stacking some games together for a College Baketball parlay, as your winnings will go up if you’re right on both ends.
NCAA News: Top College Parlay Pick of the Week
#10 Kansas (-3.5) at #20 Iowa State
Taco Tuesday Special (February 1) | 7:00 pm ET, ESPN
Kansas received some humility on Saturday as Kentucky came to town and delivered an 80-62 thrashing in the Big 12/SEC Challenge. Iowa State beat Missouri at home by 17 in the same interconference showdown. Next up for both teams is a matchup in Ames; Kansas won the earlier matchup in Lawrence, but they only prevailed by a single point. Kansas has a five-game winning streak in the series. Against Kentucky, Kansas permitted an early 8-0 run to trail, 10-5, and was behind by 20 at halftime. The deficit would swell to as large as 24. The Jayhawks only shot 40.7% from the floor, including 33% from behind the arc, and were outrebounded by 12.
Iowa State started the year 12-0 and then fell off the table, dropping five of their next seven. Sitting at 16-5 (3-5 Big 12) has them sixth in the conference, but remember that they only lost at Kansas by one. In their win over Missouri, the Cyclones were up by three at the intermission and then found the game tied with 16:35 left in regulation. Then Iowa State ran off a 15-0 run over the next 5:03 of game time and did not look back. It helped that Missouri coughed the ball up 18 times during the game, of course. A win over Kansas would give the Cyclones a three-game winning streak. I’m not sure that Iowa State can pull it off, but that spread seems a little wide.
#23 Texas (+4.5) at #14 Texas Tech
Taco Tuesday Special (February 1) | 9:00 pm ET, ESPN2
Chris Beard returns to Lubbock for the first time and will face a hostile crowd, leading the Longhorns against a Red Raiders team that he took to national prominence. The Longhorns beat Tennessee at home on Saturday, 52-51, in another one of those Big 12/SEC Challenge showdowns. Texas Tech throttled Mississippi State at home on Saturday, 76-50. Texas bounced back from a period of losing three out of four and now has a three-game winning streak; now they sit at 16-5 (5-3 Big 12). Texas almost let the game get away against Tennessee, as the Volunteers trailed by 16 with 5:34 left in regulation before going on a 16-0 run to tie the game. Texas’ Timmy Allen sank a free throw with six seconds left – the only point the Longhorns would score in the last 5:34 of the game – but it turned out to be enough.
The Red Raiders have won three of their last four and also sit at 16-5 (5-3 Big 12). Their lone loss over the last four came in double overtime at Kansas, so the team looks to be peaking at the right time. Against Mississippi State, they went into the locker room up by 15 at halftime and then started the second half with a 9-2 run and cruised the rest of the way. The team shot 61.7% from the floor and went 5 of 13 from three-point land, prying away 22 turnovers. Lubbock is already a tough road environment for teams to visit, and both the players and the fans will be motivated to take down the team’s former head coach. Texas has a 2-4 road record this season, while the Red Raiders are 13-0 at home. I like Texas Tech to impose their win early and control the game late.
Parlay Pick: Iowa State to cover / Texas Tech to win and cover:
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