NCAA Basketball: Best Bets for the Big 12/SEC Challenge
Texas A&M at No. 18 West Virginia (-15.5)
Well, the last four games haven’t been as bad for Texas A&M as the beginning of their conference season. The Aggies are 2-2 over their last four and their two losses have been by an average of five points. This stretch included a road win over Ole Miss.
Still, I don’t expect Texas A&M to be competitive in this one. A potential X-factor is the play of freshman Robert Williams. The 6’9″ forward is coming off back-to-back double-doubles and will be a part of a young, but talented front line that will need to work hard to match the size of the Mountaineers.
A potential danger area for the Aggies could be turnovers. Texas A&M averages 14.5 a game and West Virginia is No. 1 in the country in forcing them with their famed “Press Virginia” defense. Expect this to cause some havoc and create easy buckets for West Virginia.
The question in this game is not whether West Virginia will win or not (they will), the question is whether they will cover the 15.5 spread. Of the Mountaineers’ 16 wins, 13 of those have been by 16 or more. I think the Mountaineers, using their ability to create turnovers, will cover the spread against Texas A&M on Saturday.