A showdown on the hardwood in the wild world of the Big 12 will take place as the UCF Knights battle it out with the West Virginia Mountaineers. Join us for our college basketball odds series, where our UCF-West Virginia prediction and pick will be revealed.
Entering this week's action finding themselves in the midst of a three-game losing streak, there is no doubt that UCF needs a win in the most desperate of ways. Barely hovering above the .500 mark at 13-11, the Knights have lost five of six games and are reeling to say the least. Still, the Knights have kept things close in their last pair of contests as they've gone down in crushing fashion by only four points combined consecutively. Do the Knights have any grit left in them to come away with a satisfying raid win?
Meanwhile, the skies are just as gray in Morgantown. In fact, West Virginia knows what it's like to be on a losing streak as the Mountaineers have fallen flat on their faces in four straight matchups. To make matters worse, but WVU sits in a tie with Oklahoma State for the last-place spot in the Big 12 Standings. With the Big Dance well out of reach for this squad, can the Mountaineers do enough to defend home court and create some positive momentum heading into next season?
Here are the college basketball odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
College Basketball Odds: UCF-West Virginia Odds
UCF: -2.5 (-110)
Moneyline: -140
West Virginia: +2.5 (-110)
Moneyline: +116
Over: 141.5 (-115)
Under: 141.5 (-105)
How to Watch UCF vs. West Virginia
Time: 7:00 ET/4:00 PT
TV: ESPNU
Stream: fuboTV (Click for free trial)
Why UCF Will Cover The Spread/Win
For starters, it will be of utmost importance if UCF is able to find some sort of threat from beyond the perimeter offensively. Overall, it has been the Knights who aren't known to rack up points at a frenzied pace, but they may need to in this one. Over the course of their three-game losing skid, UCF has been unable to find a rhythm from the three-point line. In fact, UCF has been unable to shoot at least 34% from deep during their losing stretch. In today's day and age of college basketball, effectively hitting shots from beyond the arc remains as a strong weapon for whoever uses it wisely. Believe it or not, the Knights have to be efficient in this sense to have any shot against the Mountaineers.
Above all else, another main principle of this conference clash will happen to come in the form of leading scorer Jaylin Sellers who has definitely shown flashes of having the proper skill set for the next level. On paper, Sellers is averaging 17.0 points per game and is shooting a respectable 42% from the floor. Clearly, there aren't a whole lot of scoring options that reside on this roster. However, Sellers is the streaky type in which he can catch fire in the blink of an eye. With a season-high of 34 points this season, don't be surprised if this junior guard is the focal point of UCF's chances to cover the spread and ultimately come out on top.
Why West Virginia Will Cover The Spread/Win
At first glance, it appears that West Virginia struggles mightily in games decided by ten points or more. When taking a deeper dive at the numbers, it is the Mountaineers that possess a lousy 2-10 record in that statistical category. Obviously, it would be WVU's worst nightmare to come out flat in this one, especially in front of their roaring home crowd. While this might not make or break the Mountaineer's chances to handle their business, it could go a long way in how the rest of the game is dictated.
Not to mention, it would also do wonders if West Virginia can find ways to string together some stops. Currently, WVU is surrendering nearly 80 points per game to their opponents which is clearly not going to get the job done if the Mountaineers continue down this trend. Indeed, long gone are the days of former head coach Bob Huggins who made famous West Virginia's suffocating full-court trap philosophy. With him in the rearview mirror, the Mountaineers are struggling to find an identity on that end of the floor. At the end of the day, forcing turnovers and not surrendering plenty of open looks to UCF could be the ultimate recipe for success.
Final UCF-West Virginia Prediction & Pick
While each side in this game has hoped for better success this season up to this point, be on the lookout for all-out warfare when this showdown tips off for play. When the smoke finally clears and the clock hits triple zeroes, it'll be the Mountaineers of West Virginia that have the last laugh on their home floor.
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Final UCF-West Virginia Prediction & Pick: West Virginia +2.5 (-110)
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