Texas Tech vs West Virginia Odds and Picks
- #14 West Virginia is a 2.5-point home favorite over #12 Texas Tech in a Big 12 game on Monday night at the WVU Coliseum in Morgantown
- Texas Tech will be playing for the first time in nine days after having two games postponed because of COVID-19
- Odds, lines and the spread for Texas Tech-West Virginia along with analysis can be found below
West Virginia will try to add to the momentum it gained following a long layoff when it hosts Texas Tech at 9 pm. EST Monday at the WVU Coliseum in Morgantown.
#14 West Virginia returned from two weeks off because of COVID-19 issues to roll to a 69-47 victory at Kansas State on Saturday. The Mountaineers improved to 10-4 overall and 3-3 in the Big Ten with their second win in three games.
#12 Texas Tech will be returning from a layoff, too, as the Red Raiders will be playing for the first time in nine days after having two games postponed last week. They are 11-4 and 4-3.
Texas Tech vs West Virginia Odds
| Team | Moneyline | Spread | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Texas Tech | +116 | +2.5 (-118) | Over 137.5 (-106) |
| West Virginia | -136 | -2.5 (-104) | Under 137.5 (-114) |
Odds taken Jan. 24th at FanDuel
Defense Sparks WVU Return
Defense carried the day for West Virginia at Kansas State, enabling the Mountaineers to cover the 11-point spread.
West Virginia forced Kansas State into 28 turnovers, the most by a Big 12 team tis season, and turned them into 26 points. The Wildcats also shot just 38.1%.
Win No. 🔟#HailWV pic.twitter.com/rgu9BHONfR
— WVU Men's Basketball (@WVUhoops) January 24, 2021
Sophomore guard Miles McBride sparked the defensive effort with four of West Virginia’s 13 steals. He also scored a game-high 18 points.
That continued a fine season for McBride, the Mountaineers’ top scorer with a 15.3 point a game average. He also is averaging 4.1 assists and 1.9 steals.
Miles McBride (@deucemcb11 ) comes up HUGE to give the eers the lead late #HailWV #LetsGoMountaineers pic.twitter.com/ul0BFW1WwC
— Bonfire Sports (@Bonfiresports1) November 27, 2019
Freshman Jalen Bridges added 12 points, just his second time in double figures this season. Senior guard Taz Sherman finished with 10 points.
Sherman is averaging 12.2 points a game and shooting 90.2% on free throw attempts. He is one of four West Virginia players shooting at least 83% from the line along with junior guard Sean McNeil (90.0%), junior forward Emmitt Matthews Jr. (83.9%) and McBride (83.0%).
Junior forward Derek Culver is often the only big on the floor now that sophomore center Oscar Tshiewbe has transferred to Kentucky. Culver had a 13.4 scoring average and leads the conference with 10.3 rebounds a game.
Texas Tech’s McClung is Hot
Texas Tech is coming off a 68-60 home loss to #2 Baylor on Jan. 16 as a four-point underdog, but it was no fault of Mac McClung.
The junior guard scored 24 points to continue his recent hot streak. The transfer from Georgetown is averaging 20.2 points in is last five games, lifting his season mark to 16.3.
MAC MCCLUNG FOR THE WIN.
No. 15 Texas Tech upsets No. 4 Texas in Austin 🚨 pic.twitter.com/CZuNP0lUJU
— ESPN (@espn) January 14, 2021
Sophomore guard Kevin McCullar had a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds. He has been filling the stat sheet with averages of 11.2 points, 7.2 rebounds, 1.3 blocked shots and 1.3 steals – sparking a defense that ranks fourth in adjusted efficiency according in the country to Ken Pom.com.
Another fine all-round season is being turned in by sophomore guard Terrence Shannon Jr. with 12.8 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.4 steals a game.
Junior guard Kyler Edwards is a fourth Red Raiders player scoring in double figures with a 10.1 average. Edwards also has a 5.4 rebound average and senior Marcus Santos-Silva’s offensive rebounding percentage is 14.2.
Kyler Edwards Big 12 Player of the Week Highlights.
"I believe in him.. He's a team player.. he wants to win. I trust Kyler." – Chris Beard. pic.twitter.com/mv83AxlIWY
— Tech Hoops Guy (@TechHoopsGuy) January 20, 2020
Texas Tech is attempting 25.5 free throws a game, which is fifth nationally.
No Advantage
The series has been played on even terms in recent years with the teams splitting their last 10 games. In fact, they split a pair of games last season with each team winning on its home court – West Virginia 66-54 as a 4.5-point favorite and Texas Tech 89-81 as a 2.5-point favorite.
McBride had 22 points in 25 minutes off the bench to lead the Mountaineers in Morgantown. Shannon had a big game for Texas Tech in Lubbock with 23 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists.
Texas Tech is 3-0 on the road in conference play for just the second time since the Big 12 was formed prior to the 1996-97 season. West Virginia will have fans at home for the first time this season but that shouldn’t faze the battle-tested Red Raiders.
Pick: Texas Tech +2.5 (-118)
John Perrotto has been covering and writing about sports for various outlets for over 40 years. His work has appeared in the likes of USA TODAY, ESPN.com, SI.com, Forbes.com, The Associated Press, Baseball Digest, and more. John is based out of Beaver Falls, PA.
