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Baylor vs West Virginia Odds, Lines, and Spread (Jan. 18)

Blair Johnson

by Blair Johnson in College Basketball

Updated Dec 20, 2022 · 10:09 AM PST

Baylor head coach Scott Drew talking to his team on the bench
Baylor head coach Scott Drew, right, talks with his team during a timeout in the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against Alcorn State, Monday, Dec. 20, 2021, in Waco, Texas. (AP Photo/Rod Aydelotte)
  • No. 5 Baylor (15-2. 3-2 Big 12) takes on West Virginia (13-3, 2-2 Big 12) Tuesday, January 18th, at 5:00 pm ET in Morgantown
  • The Tigers are coming off a 61-54 home loss against Oklahoma State on Saturday, while the Mountaineers got smoked by Kansas 85-59 in Lawrence the same day
  • See the current moneyline, point spread, and game total, plus predictions

The No. 5 Baylor Bears (15-2, 3-2 Big 12) — who are coming off consecutive home defeats for the first time since the end of the 2015-16 season — look to get back in the win column against the West Virginia Mountaineers (13-3, 2-2 Big 12) Tuesday at WVU Coliseum. Tip off is at 5:00 pm ET on ESPN2.

Baylor enters the contest as road favorites against WVU according to oddsmakers and KenPom predicts the Bears will win 73-66.

Baylor vs West Virginia Odds

Team Moneyline Spread Total
Baylor -240 -6.5 (-105) O 140 (+100)
West Virginia +195 +6.5 (-115) U 140 (-120)

Odds as of January 17th, 2022 at Caesars Sportsbook.

Baylor’s odds to win the NCAA Tournament faded from +1100 to +1200 in the wake of their recent losses, while leading scorer James Akinjo saw his Wooden Award odds drop from +6500 to +6750.

Bears Down

Scott Drew’s team was without Akinjo for the final 9:49 against the Cowboys after the Oakland native was still feeling the effects of coming down hard on his rear end against Texas Tech. He played 23 minutes against the Cowboys, scoring only three points on 1-of-8 shooting from the field.

Meantime, Bob Huggins’ club saw a rough outing from Taz Sherman against the Jayhawks. The Big 12’s second-leading scorer — at nearly 20 points a game — was held to just five points on a 1-for-9 night from the field. Senior backcourt mate Malik Curry led WVU with 23 points, going 11-of-11 from the foul line.

Baylor trailed by 18 points near the five-minute mark of the first half against the Pokes, but fought back to within a point in the final minute before going down. Bears players claim the previous loss to Texas Tech earlier in the week had nothing to do with the defeat. But Drew’s crew missed 19 of their first 23 shots from the field.

The team’s second-leading scorer, LJ Cryer, paced the Bears with 18 — but it wasn’t enough. Plus, without Akinjo down the stretch and forward Jeremy Sochan out for a second straight game with an ankle injury, BU had little margin for error. Drew isn’t sure if either will be available Tuesday.

But, if Akinjo is unable to go, there are three other players (Cryer, Adam Flagler and Kendall Brown) scoring in double-figures for the defending national champs. Make no mistake: undermanned or not, this proud group does not want to lose three straight.

One reason for optimisms for the Bears: Baylor has won four of the last five against West Virginia — with two of three of those victories coming in Morgantown.

Mountain Men

Of course, the Mountaineers do not want to lose a second straight, let alone drop a home game. West Virginia was two different teams against KU. WVU controlled the tempo in the first 20 minutes, then unraveled after the break. Huggins’ guys were only 4-of-18 from beyond the arc.

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The Mountaineers play a physical, in-your-face style of defense, holding 10 of their first 16 opponents to 60 points or fewer. Expect this unit to respond in kind after allowing 85 points to the Jayhawks over the weekend. Plus, Sherman — still recovering after a bout with COVID — is coming off a disaster of a game as well. Fellow senior guard Sean McNeil is the only other player putting up double-digits (14.3 ppg) on the roster.

WVU is an elite squad at shutting other teams down, though. This group rates in the top-30 in six defensive categories — including fourth in defensive non-steal turnover percentage.

The Pick

While I don’t expect Baylor to go down for a third consecutive outing, I do expect a very tight, low-scoring affair.

With both teams coming off disappointing losses, look for a hard-fought close one that should go under the total.

Pick: Under 140 (-120)

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