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The Creighton Bluejays take on the BYU Cougars in Las Vegas. Check out our college basketball odds series for our Creighton BYU prediction and pick.
The BYU Cougars are in real trouble. Coach Mark Pope has had to go deep into his bench this season, playing younger players with less experience. Guards Spencer Johnson and Trevin Knell are unavailable for BYU. Knell is out for months and has not yet played this season. Johnson suffered his injury at the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament in The Bahamas. This is why BYU has really struggled since Atlantis, losing home games to South Dakota and Utah Valley. Not having Johnson really mattered in those games. The Cougars just don't have the depth to withstand those injuries. One could make the point that Pope should have stocked the cupboard more fully, creating more depth to guard against a downturn or the injury bug which has hit his program, but when a starting guard goes down, that is almost certainly going to affect any college basketball team to a significant extent. The key insight to make is that BYU is not strong enough in the frontcourt to offset a loss of a key guard. The Cougars have had better interior players in recent seasons under Pope. They don't right now. BYU really could fall to the lower tier of the West Coast Conference after being a top-four program in the WCC pretty much since it joined the league in men's basketball (after leaving the Mountain West). The outlook is simply not promising for this season under Pope, though the younger guys getting lots of meaningful minutes — essentially receiving on-the-job training — could pay dividends for the Cougars in future seasons.
Creighton can relate to what BYU is going through. The Bluejays were rocked by multiple key injuries last season and had to dip deep into their bench. The difference between Creighton last season and BYU this season is that Creighton's bench players were better and more prepared. The Bluejays were able to make the second round of the NCAA Tournament in spite of their injuries and the challenges to their depth.
Creighton has been a good team under coach Greg McDermott. This team has a chance to be special. It was a preseason top-15 team. However, Creighton ran into a real speed bump a week ago, getting stunned at home by Nebraska in a 63-53 loss. Creighton had a terrible shooting game, and that has been a problem for the Jays this season. They could not buy a 3-pointer against Texas, and they were similarly unable to hit perimeter shots against Nebraska. The obvious adjustment for McDermott is to get his team to attack the basket, draw a lot of fouls, get to the free throw line, and generally make their lives easier at the offensive end of the floor. The defense is fine, but the offense could be a concern if it isn't addressed promptly.
Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Creighton-BYU College Basketball odds.
College Basketball Odds: Creighton-BYU Odds
Creighton Bluejays: -9.5 (-115)
BYU Cougars: +9.5 (-105)
Over: 145.5 (-106)
Under: 145.5 (-114)
Why Creighton Could Cover the Spread
The Bluejays have a much better team, and as we explained above, BYU is throwing young, inexperienced players into the fire. BYU got torched by Utah Valley at home. Creighton has to be licking its chops.
Why BYU Could Cover the Spread
The Creighton Bluejays aren't shooting 3-pointers well. BYU can pack its defense into the paint and dare the Jays to hit shots. If they miss, BYU can win.
Final Creighton-BYU Prediction & Pick
Creighton is angry after the Nebraska loss. This is one of the better college basketball plays of the whole weekend: Creighton minus the points.
Final Creighton-BYU Prediction & Pick: Creighton -9.5
