Texas Longhorns at Oklahoma Sooners Betting Preview

Big 12 rivals square off on Thursday as the No. 15 Texas Longhorns (15-7) take on the No. 16 Oklahoma Sooners (14-8). The Sooners will host this one from the Lloyd Noble Center, with tipoff scheduled for 9:00 pm ET.
At 9-6 in the conference, the Longhorns rank 5th in the Big 12. They are trying to hold off the Sooners, not only in terms of overall rank but in the conference seeding as Oklahoma sits just a half-game behind. Texas is 2-2 in their last four games, including an 81-67 win over Iowa State on Tuesday.
Oklahoma is excited to host Texas as they are 10-2 when playing at home. They have to figure things out, though, as they have lost three in a row, including back-to-back losses to Oklahoma State in the last week.
Playing at home, Oklahoma is the slight favorite in this one. They are -136 to win while Texas’ moneyline sits at +116. The spread features the Longhorns +2 while the over/under for total points is 142.5.
By The Numbers
Offensively, these two teams are pretty similar. Oklahoma ranks 61st in scoring, averaging 75.6 points per game. Texas comes in 68th averaging 75.1 points per game.
Defensively, it is Texas with a slight advantage. They rank 110th in scoring defense allowing opponents 68.5 points per game. Oklahoma checks in at 125th, allowing 69.1 points per game, although they have allowed 78.3 over their last three games.
Texas Looking For Redemption
At the end of January, these two teams did battle in Texas, with the Longhorns coming up short 80-79. After going into halftime down nine, the Longhorns stormed back but still ended up taking the loss. Now, the Longhorns are hoping to get some revenge on Oklahoma and maybe catching them at just the right time.
Leading the way for Texas in scoring is junior guard Andrew Jones. On the season, he is averaging 14.8 points on 40.1% shooting. He is also chipping in 5 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.1 steals per game.
The Longhorns have some depth, though. They have three others averaging double digits in Courtney Ramey (13.7 points, three rebounds, four assists), Matt Coleman III (12.8 points, 3.8 rebounds, 4.4 assists, 1.2 steals), and Greg Brown (10.7 points, 6.9 rebounds).
Oklahoma Looking To Get Back Into Win Column Before Postseason
Dropping three straight games is not the way that the Sooners anticipated ending their season. Hoping to regain some of their confidence before the Big 12 tournament, Oklahoma will hope for a win in their last game of the regular season over Texas.
Senior guard Austin Reaves has been a ton for the Sooners this season. He is averaging 17.6 points on 43.6% shooting. Reaves has also been averaging 5.7 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game.
Aside from Reaves, the Sooners have three others averaging double digits. De’Vion Harmon has been spectacular this season, averaging 13 points, 3.3 rebounds, two assists, and 1.1 steals.
The other two major contributors are Umoja Gibson (10.5 points, 3.2 rebounds, 1.3 steals) and Brady Manek (10.4 points, 5.1 rebounds). In their last game, it was Manek that led the way with 20 points and nine rebounds.
Taking Texas And The Points
Like their first matchup, I have a feeling that this one is going to come down to the wire. Texas has been on the upswing while Oklahoma has been struggling, but both have something to play for in this one.
With both teams putting it all on the line Thursday, this should be an exciting matchup that might come down to just a possession or two. With that in mind, I am taking the points, which means I am taking Texas +2. As their first matchup indicated, two points could come in huge.
Prediction: Texas +2.0 Points