Community Picks: West Virginia 0% vs Baylor 0%

West Virginia has secured its best Big 12 finish since joining the league in 2012-13, but one more win would ease the road to the Mountaineers' first tournament title. Another loss might make it that much more difficult for Baylor. While No. 10 West Virginia looks to close the regular season with a fourth straight win Saturday, the 19th-ranked Bears hope a Senior Day victory in Waco will supply some momentum entering next week's tourney. Continue to Article

March 04, 2016 10:49:pm EST

A win over Baylor this week kept Oklahoma in the hunt for a second-place finish in the Big 12. If the Sooners take care of business in their finale Saturday at last-place TCU, they'll be rooting for the Bears to bounce back. Sixth-ranked Oklahoma (23-6, 11-6) beat No. 19 Baylor 73-71 on Tuesday before No. 10 West Virginia rolled to a 90-68 win over Texas Tech the next night, moving the Mountaineers one game ahead of the Sooners. Continue to Article

March 04, 2016 11:50:am EST

Oklahoma’s performance Tuesday night in squeaking by Baylor 73-71 reflected how good the Sooners can be when they’re hitting shots and playing together but also how quickly things can fall apart for them when shots aren’t falling and frustration sets in. The Sooners were brilliant in the first half behind 16 points from All-American Buddy Hield and looked the part of a team that could contend for the national title. They took a commanding 21-point halftime lead on senior night with alum Blake Griffin in the house to have his jersey retired. Continue to Article

March 01, 2016 10:51:pm EST

Slaying the sportsbook is a monstrous task. Some days bettors take up residence in a penthouse suite. Other times, they curl up in the nearest ditch, shirtless and toothless. In an attempt to avoid complete destitution, I will post my picks, whether profitable or penniless, through the NCAA tourney. Check out Tuesday's selections below: Indiana (23-6, 15-14 ATS) at Iowa (20-8, 13-12)  – The Hawkeyes are college basketball's version of the Hindenburg. An utter disaster over the past two weeks, they've crashed and burned dropping four of their past five games. Once believed to be an elite offensive force, they've taken up residence in Siberia. Ice-cold from outside and unable to cash in consistently on second-chance opportunities, Iowa averaged a gut-wrenching 0.99 points per possession in defeats to Penn St., Wisconsin and Ohio St. Peter Jok continues to torch the nets, but Jared Uthoff's game has slipped. Without a dependable third scorer, it's dependent on the All-American candidate to execute at a high level. The Hoosiers, crowned Big Ten regular season champs after Iowa's loss in Columbus, largely remain a question mark. Their proclivity for threes, transition explosiveness and ability to generate offensive rebounds are impressive, but their defense, though improved, isn't exactly ironclad. Recall they surrendered 1.28 points per possession in a blowout loss at Michigan St. and 1.21 points/possession in their last meeting versus Iowa, a seven-point victory.  Essentially, this game will be decided by what Iowa team shows. It's uneven play and inability to close out games has to get rectified in short order or it could tank in the NCAA tournament. Gut feeling, the turnaround starts Tuesday.  Prediction: Iowa (-4) 77 Indiana 72  Continue to Article

February 29, 2016 9:14:pm EST

Buddy Hield will surely be leaving Oklahoma with some hardware, though it won't contain a Big 12 regular-season championship. The sixth-ranked Sooners attempt to rediscover their slipping shooting touch in Hield's final home game Tuesday night against No. 19 Baylor. This late-season matchup had the makings of a potential Big 12 title decider when the teams met in Waco on Jan. 23, when Oklahoma (22-6, 10-6) then held the nation's No. 1 ranking and Baylor (21-8, 10-6) opened 5-1 in conference play. Continue to Article

February 29, 2016 7:11:pm EST