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It's time to continue our College Basketball odds series with a Kansas State-Baylor prediction and pick. Find out how to watch Kansas State-Baylor.
The Kansas State Wildcats have been one of the more underachieving teams in college basketball this season. Coleman Hawkins and other incoming transfers were supposed to upgrade the roster, but the pieces didn't fit long enough to make a difference. In late January and early February, Kansas State played up to its potential by beating Iowa State on the road, Arizona at home, Kansas at home, and West Virginia at home. For a few weeks, everything came together, but over the course of four and a half months, this team failed to meet expectations. Coach Jerome Tang started the season poorly. He seemed to be bringing everyone on board in the middle of winter, but the team ran out of gas at the end of February and early March. KSU has no option at the Big 12 Tournament. The Wildcats have to win this tournament in order to make the NCAA Tournament. It is not where they expected to be.
Baylor is close to an NCAA Tournament berth, but the Bears are not yet a lock. They will feel safer about a March Madness berth if they win this game. If they can win here and then bag another victory on Thursday at the Big 12 Tournament, they should be a lock. Their current situation is anything but certain, and if Baylor loses this game, it will be a very long wait for coach Scott Drew's team heading into Selection Sunday.
Here are the Kansas State-Baylor College Basketball Odds, courtesy of FanDuel
Big 12 Tournament Odds: Kansas State-Baylor Odds
Kansas State: +6.5 (-114)
Moneyline: +210
Baylor: -6.5 (-106)
Moneyline: -265
Over: 136.5 (-115)
Under: 136.5 (-105)
How to Watch Kansas State vs Baylor
Time: 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT
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TV: ESPN Plus
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Why Kansas State Will Cover The Spread/Win
Baylor has been an inconsistent team which, instead of locking down an NCAA Tournament bid with a late-season surge, has stumbled to the finish line and left its position in great doubt. Baylor acts like a bubble team, not a tournament-quality team. When teams are flaky and unreliable like that, they should be bet against, especially with the spread being this large. Kansas State isn't a good team in general, but the Wildcats have played really good basketball in short sequences this season. When the good version of KSU shows up, this is a tough team. With the spread being at 6.5 instead of at 4.5 or 3.5, there's a lot more margin for error for Kansas State in this game. At 4.5, we might pass on this one, but at 6.5, KSU looks attractive.
Why Baylor Will Cover The Spread/Win
Baylor is not an especially good team, but Kansas State has been all over the place this season. The Wildcats are a fundamentally unreliable team which briefly caught fire this season but then couldn't maintain that winning edge for more than three weeks. This is not a team worth trusting with your betting dollars. Baylor needs this game from a bubble standpoint. The urgency of the moment should carry Baylor and get this team to play harder — and better — than KSU.
Final Kansas State-Baylor Prediction & Pick
Our lean is to Kansas State, but we're not ready to trust an erratic team such as the Wildcats. Wait for a live in-game play, probably in the second half.
Final Kansas State-Baylor Prediction & Pick: Kansas State +6.5
