No. 4 Missouri Tigers at Oklahoma Sooners
Monday, 2/6/12, 7:00 PM EST, TV: ESPNU
Opening Point Spread: Missouri -6
Current Betting Line: Missouri -4.5
Opening Total: 146
Current Total: 145
Odds Courtesy of Bookmaker
Missouri moved into a three-way tie for first place in the Big 12 Conference standings with a thrilling 74-71 victory over the Kansas Jayhawks as three-point home favorites. The Tigers have won seven of their last eight games, but have gone just 3-2-2 ATS over that span. “You can’t just sit here and say the matchup with Kansas was an ordinary game because it’s not,” commented Tigers guard Michael Dixon. Senior guard Marcus Denmon certainly led the charge offensively, scoring 29 points on 10-of-16 shooting from the floor. Missouri is 5-3 ATS as a road favorite of 3.5 to 6 points the last two-plus seasons.
The Tigers have tallied an 8-2 mark in their first 10 league games, which is currently the best conference start since the 2008-09 season. Missouri has also won four true road games this season and eight games away from Mizzou Arena, which is much better than tallying just two true road wins all of last year. Offensively, the team leads the Big 12 in scoring 80.9 points per game, while surrendering just 67.1 points in the same situation.
Oklahoma will try and snap a two-game losing streak Monday night when hosting Missouri inside the Lloyd Noble Center, coming off a 77-70 loss to the Iowa State Cyclones as three-point home favorites. The Sooners have failed to cover five of six games, while going “over” the total in their last two contests. “We have got to keep working,” commented Sooners first-year head coach Lon Kruger. “We have a long way to go.” The program has dropped three straight games in this series to ranked Missouri teams, including the last two by a combined 61 points. Oklahoma is 8-11 ATS on the year.
The Sooners have three starters that average in double figures, with junior guard Steven Pledger leading the way in scoring 17.6 points per game. He ranks fourth in scoring in the Big 12 and leads the way in hitting 2.7 three-point shots per game. Oklahoma holds a 112-96 all-time advantage in this series, including wins in seven of the last nine when playing at home. The team is the only school in the Big 12 with three players ranked in the top 15 in scoring in league play.
Bettors will likely back the Sooners due to the home team being 6-0 ATS in the last six meetings in this series, while the Tigers are 18-40-1 ATS on the road.
Don’t miss out on a winning season and let the college basketball handicappers at Maddux Sports line your pockets with cash. Long term packages are available now!
