Super Tuesday for College Basketball will see a Top 5 team in action. In Big 12 action the Kansas State Wildcats will travel to take on the No. 3 Missouri Tigers. The game is scheduled for a 7 p.m. start time and it will be televised nationally on ESPN2. Currently the odds have Missouri favored by 9 points with the total sitting at 138 points, down from where it opened at 140.5 points as sharps are looking for a low-scoring game.
Free Analysis: Missouri has proven itself to be one of the best home-court teams in college basketball this year. The Tigers, sitting at 25-2 on the season and 12-2 in the conference, have a game in and over Kansas, who also has a 12-2 record in the Big 12 this year. The Tigers still have to host Kansas coming up on Saturday afternoon, but having a look-ahead tonight could prove to be disastrous. That's because Kansas State gave Mizzou one of their two losses this season and will seek its second straight upset of a top-10 foe Tuesday night when it visits Mizzou Arena. Missouri now has a chance to claim sole possession of first place in the conference if it can beat archrival and co-leader Kansas on Saturday. The Tigers, though, will only get that opportunity if they can first top the Wildcats (18-8, 7-7) in tonight's game. Missouri coach Frank Haith struggled against the Wildcats earlier this season. The Tigers shot a season-worst 32.7 percent and was outrebounded 39-25 en route to a 75-59 defeat — its eighth consecutive loss in Manhattan. Yuck. "It was an eye opener for us at that time of the year," Haith said. "They physically came just after us, and we didn't match their intensity. In order for us to have success, we have to match that intensity and quite honestly, exceed it." Missouri hasn't had a problem with intensity the entire season. The Tigers opened ranked 25th in every poll and have steam-rolled their way to nearly the top of the polls. Missouri has won seven consecutive games coming into tonight's contest and has won 24 of 26 at home against the Wildcats including four straight, winning last year's game 75-59. The Tigers struggled a bit on the road this past Saturday, beating a weak Texas A&M team by nine points. Kansas State is coming off a major win over No. 9 Baylor Saturday, 57-56. Prior to that, the Wildcats had lost four of six games. Marcus Denmon, the Big 12's second-leading scorer (17.8 ppg), had a team-best 17 points for Missouri in the loss to the Wildcats despite shooting just 5 for 14. Michael Dixon, who scored points 16 against Kansas State last month, is averaging 15.8 on 65.5 percent shooting over his last six games overall. Missouri is going to have to take advantage of their team speed tonight against the Wildcats. They are still considered to be on the bubble, but back-to-back wins against Top 10 teams would pretty much cement them in the tournament. The Wildcats are just 7-7 in the Big 12 this season, but they've already been able to beat Mizzou at home.
Free Pick: I like Mizzou in this game because they're at home. Sure, it's a bit of a sandwich spot for the home team tonight as they have to travel to take on No. 5 Kansas on Saturday. However, the Tigers cannot run the risk of being swept by Kansas State this season. For a team looking to cement a No. 1 seed in the tournament, they have to win basketball games at home, especially when they are favored by nearly double digits. Mizzou might be playing their best basketball of the season, and they should win big tonight.
Betting Strategies - College Basketball Home Court Value
Host Vegas Runner and Pregame Pro Bryan Leonard discuss that not all home courts created equal and every conference has different values.