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The Oklahoma Sooners are set to face the Baylor Bears. Check out our college basketball odds series, which includes our Oklahoma Baylor prediction, odds, and pick.
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The Oklahoma Sooners were hoping to make the NCAA Tournament this season. When one of their leading scorers, Elijah Harkless, was knocked out for the remainder of the season several weeks ago with an injury, the Sooners lost several games in a row and seemed completely dead and buried. However, they have reeled off a series of improbable wins to stay on the bubble. Oklahoma is in a position where, as college basketball odds experts would agree, it can make the NCAA Tournament with a win over a Baylor team which is expected to be a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Bubble teams want to play the highest-ranked teams, because one win over an elite team is enough to vault a bubble team over several competitors for one of the final spots in the field of 68. Oklahoma has precisely that chance here in this game. It's remarkable that coach Porter Moser, in his first season, has OU this close to an NCAA bid. People who study the Big 12 Tournament odds will tell you that when Moser gets a few recruiting classes to Norman, OU should be a top-tier team in the Big 12. Think about that when making your Oklahoma Baylor prediction.
Baylor, even more than Oklahoma without Harkless, is a study in a team coming together despite injuries and roster disruptions. The Bears are without Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua, who is out for the rest of the season. Other players — Adam Flagler, L.J. Cryer, and Jeremy Sochan, among others — have missed multiple games due to injuries. Yet, through all of those problems and the limitations they have created, Baylor still won a share of the Big 12 title with Kansas and appears poised to get a top seed in the NCAA Tournament. Scott Drew continues to be one of the very best coaches in the country. This Baylor team doesn't have the star power of last year's group, which had Davion Mitchell and Jared Butler, but even without superstars, the Bears are once again an elite team with serious national championship potential. Include this reality into the formulation of an Oklahoma Baylor pick.
Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Oklahoma-Baylor odds:
Big 12 Tournament Odds: Oklahoma-Baylor Odds
Oklahoma: +7.5 (-110)
Baylor: -7.5 (-110)
Over: 133.5 (-110)
Under: 133.5 (-110)
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Why Oklahoma Could Cover the Spread
The Sooners are playing for their NCAA Tournament lives. This is a do-or-die desperation situation. The Sooners will play with great energy, and if they can knock down 3-point shots, they can push a Baylor team which could easily be mentally exhausted after all the battling and all the work it has done to get to this point.
Why Baylor Could Cover the Spread
The Oklahoma offense without Elijah Harkless is very limited. Baylor plays tremendous defense and is in a good position to smother the Sooners, holding them under 60 points and maybe even 55.
Final Oklahoma-Baylor Prediction & Pick
Oklahoma is scrappy. Baylor is elite. Baylor got several days to rest before this game. If the Bears are mentally refreshed (which is their biggest challenge and point of uncertainty in this game), they will roll.
Final Oklahoma-Baylor Pick: Baylor -7.5
