The top teams in the Big 12 clash when the No. 8 Baylor Bears face the No. 10 Kansas Jayhawks on Saturday afternoon. The Bears (19-3, 7-2), who have won four of their last five games, are coming off an 81-77 win over West Virginia on Monday. The Jayhawks (18-3, 7-1), who have wins in six of their last seven games, defeated No. 20 Iowa State 70-61 on Tuesday. The teams split their two meetings last year with Baylor posting a 77-69 win in Waco, Texas, while Kansas earned a 71-58 win in Lawrence, Kan. The Jayhawks’ leading scorer Ochai Agbaji missed the Iowa State game due to COVID-19 protocols and his availability is in question. LJ Cryer (foot) and Adam Flagler (knee) are questionable for the Bears.
Tipoff from Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrence is set for 4 p.m. ET. Kansas leads the all-time series 34-7. The Jayhawks are 2.5-point favorites in the latest Baylor vs. Kansas odds from Caesars Sportsbook, while the over-under for total points scored is set at 146.5. Before making any Kansas vs. Baylor picks, be sure to check out the college basketball predictions and betting advice from the SportsLine Projection Model.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every Division I college basketball game 10,000 times. Over the past five-plus years, the proprietary computer model has generated an impressive profit of over $2,400 for $100 players on its top-rated college basketball picks against the spread. Anyone who has followed it has seen huge returns.
Now, the model has set its sights on Kansas vs. Baylor, and just locked in its picks and CBB predictions. You can visit SportsLine now to see the model’s picks. Here are the college basketball odds and betting lines for Baylor vs. Kansas:
- Baylor vs. Kansas spread: Kansas -2.5
- Baylor vs. Kansas over-under: 146.5 points
- Baylor vs. Kansas money line: Kansas -145, Baylor +125
- BAY: The Bears are 16-6-1 against the spread in their last 23 games following a straight-up win
- KU: The over is 7-1 in the Jayhawks’ last eight Saturday games
Featured Game | Kansas Jayhawks vs. Baylor Bears
Why Kansas can cover
Agbaji leads the way with 20.9 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game, but if he can’t go, Kansas will lean on junior guard Christian Braun, the team’s second-leading scorer. In 82 career games with the Jayhawks, Braun has 56 starts. This season, Braun is averaging 15.1 points, 5.7 rebounds, 68 assists and 26 steals. He scored a season-high 31 points and grabbed eight rebounds at St. John’s, N.Y., on Dec. 3 and was named the Big 12 Player of the Week on Dec. 6.
Sophomore forward Jalen Wilson is coming off a 13-point, six-rebound performance at Iowa State, the sixth time this season he has reached double-figure scoring. He also has one double-double, scoring 16 points and grabbing 10 rebounds in a 78-75 win at Kansas State on Jan. 22. For the year, Wilson is averaging 9.1 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game. He is hitting on 46 percent of his field goals and 60 percent of his free throws.
Why Baylor can cover
The Bears have four players averaging in double figures, including senior guard James Akinjo. Akinjo averages 13.6 points, 5.6 assists, 2.5 rebounds and 2.2 steals per game. He is one of the team’s top free-throw shooters, connecting on 78.9 percent of his foul shots. The transfer from Arizona, started all 26 games for the Wildcats last season and earned first-team All-Pac 12 honors. He has posted five or more assists in 14 of 20 games and has registered at least one steal in 19 of 20 games at Baylor.
Freshman guard Kendall Brown has scored in double figures in three of his last four games and 14 on the season. He scored a season-high 19 points against Central Arkansas on Nov. 17 and has recorded two double-doubles on the year. He leads the team with 30 dunks this season, including four in a game four times. Brown ranks 14th nationally and second among freshmen in effective field goal percentage at 66.7 percent. He has recorded 21 assists over the last eight games (2.6 per game), more than doubling the previous 12 games combined (10 assists and 0.8 per game).
How to make Baylor vs. Kansas picks
SportsLine’s model is leaning over on the total, projecting 149 combined points. It has also generated an against-the-spread pick that cashes in almost 60 percent of simulations. You can only get the model’s picks at SportsLine.
So who wins Baylor vs. Kansas? And which side of the spread hits in almost 60 percent of simulations? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the spread to jump on, all from the advanced model that is up over $2,400 on its top-rated college basketball picks the last five years, and find out.
