Texas basketball vs. Kansas State: Prediction and odds college basketball
Up next on the Big 12 schedule for No. 6 Texas basketball and acting head coach Rodney Terry is a tough battle at home at the Moody Center in Austin against first-year head coach Jerome Tang and the Kansas State Wildcats. Texas can win its seventh straight if it comes out on top against Kansas State on Jan. 3.
Terry and the Longhorns are riding high coming into this contest against Kansas State after downing the rival Oklahoma Sooners 70-69 on the road in Norman in the Big 12 opener on Dec. 31. The win over Oklahoma gives Texas a record of 12-1 (1-0 Big 12) heading into the matchup against Kansas State.
This matchup against Kansas State will also be the first Big 12 contest at the Moody Center for Texas men’s basketball.
Moreover, Kansas State is also on a hot streak coming into this matchup against the Longhorns. Kansas State, like Texas, has won six straight games as of Jan. 3. Kansas State is coming off a gritty win at home in Manhattan over the No. 24 West Virginia Mountaineers on Dec. 31, by the final score of 82-76 in overtime.
Here’s a look at the betting odds and game prediction as Texas gets set to host Kansas State at home at the Moody Center in Austin on Jan. 3, with the tip-off time set for 8 p.m. CT.
Texas basketball vs. Kansas State: Betting odds for Jan. 3
Texas is a 9.5-point favorite over Kansas State and the over/under is set at 135.5 (per FanDuel).
The moneyline favors Texas (-490) by a pretty significant margin over Kansas State (+365).
According to the ESPN Basketball Power Index, Texas has an 86.4 percent chance of beating Kansas State.
Texas vs. Kansas State prediction
Facing Kansas State at the Moody Center is something that should give the Longhorns a sizable advantage. Kansas State has struggled more when playing away from Manhattan this season, including a 1-1 record in true road games. The only true road win on the season for Kansas State came over a bad Cal Golden Bears team by nine points on Nov. 11.
Texas is undefeated in Austin this season, including two wins over ranked opponents in the Creighton Blue Jays and Gonzaga Bulldogs.
I do like this matchup on paper for the Longhorns.
Texas is a team that moves the ball well and is very disruptive on the perimeter on defense. The post defense has also remained solid when senior big man Dylan Disu is healthy in the frontcourt rotation.
Meanwhile, Kansas State is a team that is better than most people expected during the preseason. Tang has seen key players such as guard Markquis Nowell and forward Keyontae Johnson take a lot of people by surprise this season.
Nowell is the guy that Kansas State likes to run the halfcourt offense through. He is a true point guard that commands the offense effectively, as he leads the Big 12 averaging an impressive 8.5 assists per game.
Transfer forward Keyontae Johnson has also impressed this season as he’s averaging a career-best 17.7 points per game and 6.8 rebounds in his first year playing in Manhattan.
For the most part, Kansas State has struggled this season against teams that can command the tempo and distribute the ball freely in the settled halfcourt offense, which happens to be two strengths of the Longhorns.
Kansas State’s sole loss on the season, which came at the hands of the Butler Bulldogs on the road 76-64, saw its defense struggle to be disruptive in the passing lanes. Butler had 18 assists as a team in that game, the most that Kansas State has allowed this season.
Next. 3 struggling players that must step up in January. dark
Texas’ ball movement and active frontcourt should be enough to give them an edge over Kansas State. Disu can really give Texas an advantage here down low against a Kansas State frontcourt that hasn’t given them much production this season among the bigger forwards and centers.
Final score prediction: Texas-78, Kansas State-70
*These odds are subject to change over time