Big 12 Preview and Picks

[Raji]

Here’s a rundown of this year’s Big 12 tournament, taking place Thursday through Sunday at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo.:

No. 1 Texas Longhorns Odds to win: +250

The Longhorns took care of business when it mattered this season, stringing together an eight-game winning streak that put them in position to earn a share of the regular-season title. I absolutely love their backcourt with D.J. Augustin and A.J. Abrams, but I still question their toughness. They’ll get past Oklahoma State and likely Baylor in the semis, before falling to Kansas in the final.



No. 2 Kansas Jayhawks Odds to win: -152

My pick to take home the tournament championship on Sunday. The Jayhawks closed the regular season with three consecutive exclamation-point victories over Kansas State, Texas Tech and Texas A&M. This veteran squad is not without its weaknesses, but there’s no denying it has the most raw talent in the Big 12. Texas came out on top in their lone regular-season meeting, but Kansas gets its revenge when it counts.



No. 3 Kansas State Wildcats Odds to win: +500

The Wildcats were the hottest thing in the Big 12 in January, but cooled off down the stretch, losing four of their final six games (all six ATS). No one has been able to contain freshman sensation Michael Beazley, but his supporting cast has struggled at times. They could be in tough against Texas A&M in the second round, but will likely survive that test before exiting in the semis.



No. 4 Oklahoma Sooners Odds to win: +650

It appears that Blake Griffin is healthy heading into the Big 12 tournament, and that’s good news for Sooner fans. Oklahoma carries a three-game SU and ATS winning streak into the tourney, but finished with a less-than-impressive 6-10 ATS mark. It could be a second-round exit for the Sooners this year, as they’ll face a tough test in Baylor.



No. 5 Baylor Bears Odds to win: +1500

I like this Baylor team; it could make some noise this week in Kansas City. The Bears finished the season on a 5-1 ATS run, and draw the easiest first-round opponent, Colorado. Should they win that game, they get another favorable matchup in the second round against Oklahoma. The Bears were swept by the Sooners in the season series, but both games were extremely close. A semifinal appearance by Baylor wouldn’t surprise me in the least.



No. 6 Texas A&M Aggies Odds to win: +1300

The Aggies are having a transition year, and got off to an ugly 1-3 start to the Big 12 season. They followed that with a five-game winning streak, but then finished the season with five losses in their last seven games. They haven’t found that go-to-guy to fill the shoes of Acie Law. Because of that, I predict they make a second-round exit against Kansas State.



No. 7 Nebraska Cornhuskers Odds to win: +2200

Maybe the most inconsistent team in the Big 12, the Huskers have been a hard team to read this season. They had notable wins over Kansas State, Texas A&M and Oklahoma, but they also lost to the likes of Colorado and Missouri. They’ll get a chance for revenge against the Tigers in the opening round of this tournament, in what amounts to nothing more than a coin flip. I’ll go out on a limb and predict they get upset in the first round.



No. 8 Texas Tech Red Raiders Odds to win: +2500

It was certainly a historic season in Lubbock, one that will be remembered more for Bobby Knight’s retirement rather than the Red Raiders’ performance. They enter the tournament with no momentum, having been thrashed by Kansas and Baylor in their final two games. With just one winon the road, they’ll be hard pressed to get past a tough opening-round matchup with Oklahoma State on Thursday.



No. 9 Oklahoma State Cowboys Odds to win: +2000

The Cowboys closed out the regular season with consecutive losses, but there’s no question -- they’ve played their best basketball of the season over the past few weeks. A five-game winning streak included upset wins over Texas A&M and Kansas and gives them plenty of confidence heading into this tournament. They may be the lower-ranked team, but they’ll likely be favored against the Red Raiders in the opening round. I like their chances of moving on to Round 2.



No. 10 Missouri Tigers Odds to win: +4000

Missouri opened its Big 12 campaign with a bang, upsetting Texas in its first conference matchup. But it was all downhill from there, as the Tigers went 3-12 ATS over their final 15 conference games. But they get a favorable first-round matchup with Nebraska, a team they split two meetings with this season. Don’t be surprised to see the Tigers squeak into the second round, but that’s as far as they go.



No. 11 Iowa State Cyclones Odds to win: +8000

While the Cyclones did manage to secure four conference wins, only one of those came in their final 10 games. Like Colorado, they found success against the number, cashing at a 9-7 ATS clip against Big 12 competition. They were handled easily by Texas A&M in their own gym during the regular season, so expect the Cyclones to go away quietly in this tournament.



No. 12 Colorado Buffaloes Odds to win: +10,000

As expected, it was a trying year in Boulder. The Buffaloes finished Big 12 play with just three victories, and all three of those came on their home floor. Although they were 11-5 ATS in conference play, I expect them to make an early exit, drawing a tough opening-round matchup against Baylor.



Raji