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Big 12 Basketball: 2021 Conference Tournament preview and predictions

By Benjamin Zacher

Mar 13, 2019; Kansas City, MO, USA; Big 12 logo at center court prior to the TCU Horned Frogs and the Oklahoma State Cowboys game of the first round of the Big 12 conference tournament at Sprint Center. Mandatory Credit: William Purnell-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 13, 2019; Kansas City, MO, USA; Big 12 logo at center court prior to the TCU Horned Frogs and the Oklahoma State Cowboys game of the first round of the Big 12 conference tournament at Sprint Center. Mandatory Credit: William Purnell-USA TODAY Sports /
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Big 12 Basketball Oklahoma Sooners Austin Reaves Alonzo Adams-USA TODAY Sports
Big 12 Basketball Oklahoma Sooners Austin Reaves Alonzo Adams-USA TODAY Sports /

First round

#8 TCU vs. #9 Kansas State

It feels like an eternity ago that TCU was a potential bubble team, but now, the Horned Frogs – which have lost six of their last seven and 11 of their last 14 – will take on a Kansas State team that, after losing 13-straight games, has won three of its last four heading into the Big 12 Tournament – including a 62-54 road win over TCU on February 20th.

That game saw Kansas State – down 51-46 with five minutes left – end the game on a 16-3 run, made possible by the trio of Nijel Pack (12 points, five assists), Selton Miguel (nine points), and Mike McGuirl (16 points, nine boards, six assists).

The Wildcats dominated TCU inside in points in the paint, 30-16, and held the Horned Frogs to woeful shooting clips of 37.9% (2PT) and 22.2% (3PT).  TCU’s lone success was at the FT line (20-23) – and, given their recent struggles to end the season, this very much could be a repeat of the last meeting.

Prediction: Kansas State 61, TCU 54

#7 Oklahoma vs. #10 Iowa State

The Sooners have struggled mightily down the stretch, dropping their last four games – all by single-digits – to close out the regular season.  But the Cyclones have been in an even worse state, currently riding a 17-game losing streak, sitting with a 2-21 record, and being just one of two active teams in all of college basketball to have a winless record in conference play.  To state the obvious, Oklahoma claimed both games against Iowa State, albeit by narrow margins of 79-72 and 66-56.

Oklahoma – a team that does not rely much on two-pointers – thrived inside the arc against the Cyclones in both meetings, shooting a combined 39-65 (60%), all the while dismantling Iowa State from the charity stripe, going a combined 31-43 – while the Cyclones were just 6-8.

The Sooners will have to shut down Iowa State from outside the arc, considering the Cyclones shot 16-31 from the perimeter in the first meeting – but, despite Oklahoma’s struggles of late, they should be able to rebound with a win here.

Prediction: Oklahoma 66, Iowa State 57

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