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Big 12 MBB Weekday Previews

NCAA Basketball: Big 12 Media Day Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

#7 West Virginia @ Kansas State

Monday, January 1st 4:00 PM CT, ESPNU

#7 West Virginia (12-1) and Kansas State (11-2) are both coming off of very important wins in their conference openers. West Virginia was able to knock off Oklahoma State on the road and Kansas State had an offensive explosion that led to a blow out win over Iowa State in Hilton. While Kansas State showed strong offensive prowess in their opener, West Virginia is a whole different defensive beast with their press. The Mountaineers should pick up their second conference win in another road game, solidifying their spot as a contender for the Big 12 title.

73-68 West Virginia.

Texas @ Iowa State

Monday, January 1st 6:00 PM CT, ESPNU

Texas (9-4) put together a hard fought effort in their opening loss to Kansas. Iowa State (9-3) looked good against Kansas State in the first half before falling apart in the second half. Texas probably has more raw talent in this game than the Cyclones, but Iowa State has a strong home court advantage. Even so, Texas is a better team than their record indicates and they’ll probably get a win with Mohamed Bamba dominating the paint.

75-67 Texas.

#10 TCU @ #18 Baylor

Tuesday, January 2nd 6:00 PM CT, ESPNN

#10 TCU (12-1) and #18 Baylor (10-3) are both coming off of conference opener losses of drastically different styles. TCU let up a 13 point lead to Oklahoma, losing by one point. Baylor got blown out by Texas Tech in a game that wasn’t particularly close. Baylor’s biggest issue right now is injuries, with standout big man Jo Lual-Acuil Jr. If Jo is still out, I think TCU wins this game. If he’s back, I think the Bears get the win. I’ll assume he’s still out for my prediction.

68-62 TCU.

#22 Texas Tech @ #11 Kansas

Tuesday, January 2nd 8:00 PM CT, ESPN

#22 Texas Tech (12-1) got a major confidence boost after blowing out fellow top 25 opponent Baylor. #11 Kansas (11-2) earned a hard fought victory over Texas, starting their quest for another regular season title with a win. This game should be very telling on two questions: Is Kansas loaded up for another regular season title? And is Texas Tech a definitively great team? I think the answer to both questions will be largely yes, with a close Kansas win in The Phog.

83-81 Kansas.

Oklahoma State @ #12 Oklahoma

Wednesday, January 3rd 8:00 PM CT, ESPNU

The first game of Bedlam comes early with Oklahoma State (10-3) visiting #12 Oklahoma (11-1). I legitimately think Oklahoma has a shot at winning both the Heisman and the Wooden Award in the 2017-2018 season, with Trae Young making a strong case as the best player in the country. He scored 39 points and had 14 assists in his game against TCU. With such an outstanding player, Oklahoma is my favorite to win the conference this year. With that in mind, I have no doubt OU should get a home win against a good, but not elite, Oklahoma State.

88-70 Oklahoma.