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NCAA Basketball: Ranking 2019-20 SEC/Big 12 Challenge games

By Brian Rauf

LAWRENCE, KS - JANUARY 30: Head coach John Calipari of the Kentucky Wildcats and head coach Bill Self of the Kansas Jayhawks greet each other prior to the game at Allen Fieldhouse on January 30, 2016 in Lawrence, Kansas. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
LAWRENCE, KS - JANUARY 30: Head coach John Calipari of the Kentucky Wildcats and head coach Bill Self of the Kansas Jayhawks greet each other prior to the game at Allen Fieldhouse on January 30, 2016 in Lawrence, Kansas. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) /
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BOSTON, MA – MARCH 23: Head coach Bob Huggins of the West Virginia Mountaineers reacts during the second half against the Villanova Wildcats in the 2018 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament East Regional at TD Garden on March 23, 2018 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
BOSTON, MA – MARCH 23: Head coach Bob Huggins of the West Virginia Mountaineers reacts during the second half against the Villanova Wildcats in the 2018 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament East Regional at TD Garden on March 23, 2018 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /

8) Missouri at West Virginia

West Virginia is the only Big 12 school with a losing record (1-5) in the challenge and, after their struggles last season, the Mountaineers would do well to pick up a key non-conference win against Power 6 competition.

A roster full of talented returners and a quality recruiting class should have the Mountaineers on the right side of the NCAA Tournament bubble. Missouri does not have those expectations.

The Tigers do return a majority of last season’s roster so the hope for improvement is there, but that team went just 15-17 and they didn’t add any really significant pieces to their roster. This is just an underwhelming matchup between two teams facing uncertain seasons.

7) Mississippi State at Oklahoma

For as good of a coach as Lon Kruger is and how surprisingly successful Oklahoma was last year, this year’s group won’t be great. They lose Christian James, last season’s top scorer, who really did everything for them. The Sooners still have some nice pieces – namely sharpshooting big man Brady Manek – but they are clearly rebuilding.

On the other hand, while Mississippi State doesn’t have last season’s breakout expectations due to the departure of Quinndary Weatherspoon, they return star guards Lamar Peters and Nick Weatherspoon.

The Bulldogs will be the clear favorite in this game but, as they say, playing on the road is the toughest thing to do in college basketball.

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