The nation’s strongest men’s college basketball conference descends on Kansas City, Missouri, for the next few days for the Big 12 Conference tournament. Reigning national champion Kansas is the top seed for the event and also likely has secured a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament, while six other teams are locks for the Big Dance with another team knocking on the door in Oklahoma State, according to the Bracket Matrix.
Of course, the Jayhawks are favored at +220 to win the Big 12 tournament, but this will be a contentious tourney. There are other teams certainly capable of winning, and even the quarterfinals on Thursday will be full of top-level matchups.
Big 12 tournament odds
(Odds from Caesars Sportsbook as of Tuesday afternoon)
Kansas Jayhawks +220
Texas Longhorns +300
TCU Horned Frogs +500
Baylor Bears +550
Kansas State Wildcats +850
Iowa State Cyclones +1100
West Virginia Mountaineers +2000
Oklahoma State Cowboys +3500
Oklahoma Sooners +4000
Texas Tech Red Raiders +5500
The Favorite: Kansas Jayhawks (+220)
Gradey Dick is an impressive freshman who is making an impact for the Jayhawks shooting 40.6% from 3-point range. Jalen Wilson in the post is great for second-chance opportunities and powering through anyone. Kansas has great potential to repeat another national championship in part because they’ve faced difficult competition in the talented Big 12. If Kansas makes it to the semifinals, they’ll have to play either Iowa State or Baylor, two teams that split with the Jayhawks this season.
Contenders: Texas Longhorns (+300), TCU Horned Frogs (+500), Baylor Bears (+550), Kansas State Wildcats (+850)
This is where each of the games will be a battle because any one of these teams could take on Kansas. Texas is 23-8 and despite drama with former head coach Chris Beard (who was dismissed during the season) has had a nice season. The guard-forward duo of Marcus Carr and Timmy Allen will be hard to stop. Baylor has an impressive freshman in Keyonte George, who is leading the Bears in points and sacrifices his body on defense. Kansas State has impressive shooters who can change the course of any game led by David N’Guessan, who is 57% from beyond the arc.
Sleeper: Iowa State Cyclones (+1100)
When Iowa State shot its way to victory against North Carolina in a Thanksgiving tournament, it was the first sign they would be a team to watch out for. Even though they split their conference games 9-9, the Cyclones are worth talking about. Even with senior guard Caleb Grill dismissed from the team, ISU has navigated a difficult schedule. The Cyclones like to do a lot of motion and swinging to get the right shot but won’t penetrate as much. That’s why they have Osun Osunniyi to block shots in the paint and get rebounds. The Cyclones can be a hot team once their offense gets going, but if they start cold it could spell trouble.Â
Pick: Texas
The Longhorns will scrap and claw their way to win. Their first loss was in overtime to Illinois, and they have lost games because opponents such as Tennessee, Kansas State and Iowa State were the better 3-point shooting team. But Texas’ defense will be a difference-maker and could lead to a hot streak. Here’s a team that proved it could win a Big 12 title when it controlled a victory against Kansas last week from start to finish.
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