Top-25 Big 12 teams will square off Tuesday night as the No. 17 TCU Horned Frogs (17-6, 6-4) take on the No. 12 Kansas State Wildcats (18-5, 6-4). The Wildcats will host this one at Fred Bramlage Coliseum, with tipoff scheduled for 9:00 pm ET.
The Wildcats are the slight favorite in this one playing at home. They are -182 to win, while the Horned Frogs’ moneyline sits at +150. The spread features TCU as 3.5-point underdogs, and the over/under for total points is 147.5 (-110).
TCU Looks For Big Jump In Big 12
With four teams tied at 6-4 in the Big 12, the TCU Horned Frogs are hoping to make a jump all the way to third in the conference with a win on Tuesday.
Unfortunately for TCU fans, while the team has played well at home (11-2), they have struggled on the road (2-4). They are also coming off of a loss in their last game, when they were defeated by unranked Oklahoma State 79-73.
TCU currently ranks 36th in the nation in scoring, averaging 77.3 points per game. They are led by junior guard Mike Miles Jr. In 18 games, he is averaging 18.1 points, 2.3 rebounds, and three assists per game.
Unfortunately, he is doubtful for this game with a knee injury.
Without Miles, the next leading scorers include Emanuel Miller (13.2 points, 6.4 rebounds) and Damion Baugh (12.8 points, 4.2 rebounds, 5.2 assists).
The Horned Frogs rank 63rd in the nation in scoring defense, allowing 66 points per game to opponents (72 on the road).
Wildcats Hope To Get Back Into Win Column
With back-to-back losses to both No. 9 Kansas (90-78) and No. 5 Texas (69-66), the Wildcats have had a rough stretch of games in the last week. On Tuesday, they will hope to get back into the win column as they host TCU.
Luckily for Wildcats’ fans, they have played well at home this season. Despite losing their last game, they are 12-1 at Fred Bramlage Coliseum.
Defensively, Kansas State ranks just 127th in the nation, allowing 68.3 points per game to opponents. However, they are much better at home, where they are allowing just 60.7 points per game.
In terms of scoring, the Wildcats rank 42nd overall, averaging 76.7 points per game. They are led by senior forward Keyontae Johnson. In 23 games, he is averaging 18.1 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game.
In addition to Johnson, Markquis Nowell (16.8 points, 3.6 rebounds, 7.8 assists, 2.3 steals) and Nae’Qwan Tomlin (10.4 points, 5.8 rebounds) have also had great years.
Take TCU And The Points
In their last 20 games, TCU has gone 15-5 overall, but they are just 2-9 in their last 11 true road games. In their last 18 games overall, they are 12-5-1 against the spread.
For Kansas State, they are 15-5 in their last 20 games and 11-4 against the spread in their last 15. In their last 12 games at home, the Wildcats are 11-1.
This one is a tough one to call. On the one hand, TCU does not play well on the road, but on the other hand, Kansas State has been struggling as of late.
With it being a bit of a toss-up, the most value is taking the points. In this one, that means taking TCU +3.5 (-102).
