NCAAB Wednesday January 18th #14 TCU at West Virginia Betting Preview
Trap on Mountaineers?
The line in Wednesday’s TCU vs West Virginia betting matchup is interesting, with the #14 Horned Frogs getting +2.5 points on the road in Morgantown. TCU (14-3) is coming off a dominating 82-68 win over Kansas State over the weekend, a KSU team that should be on the rise from #13 after their win over #2 Kansas on Tuesday.
West Virginia (10-7) is trending in the opposite direction with five straight losses and yet they are -2.5 favorites? There have been some close ones during the streak for WVU like the 77-76 loss at Oklahoma on Saturday, but defeats stacking up starts to get to a team. 56% of the betting public like the Horned Frogs here.
TCU Rolling Along
The Horned Frogs’ three losses this season have come by a combined 7 points. The early season 64-63 home defeat to Northwestern State was a shocker considering TCU was a -21.5 favorite, but Texas Christian has dropped to 3-2 in Big 12 play thanks to recent losses at Texas (79-75) and vs Iowa State (69-67).
Texas is #7 in the country and Iowa State #12 so at the very least those are quality losses for TCU. The Horned Frogs also picked up a very good win over the weekend, taking down Kansas State 82-68 to snap a 9-game win streak for the Wildcats.
Emanuel Miller had 21 to lead the win over KSU, his second straight game scoring 20+. Eddie Lampkin also added a season high 17 against a Kansas State defense that is 8th in the Big 12 in points allowed – but West Virginia is 9th.
West Virginia Tries to Stop Their Skid
The Mountaineers are 0-5 heading into the TCU at West Virginia betting matchup, and that mark includes a one point loss to Oklahoma, falling by five to Baylor, and dropping an OT contest against Kansas State. Despite some close losses, West Virginia is still making moves firing assistant coach Larry Harrison last week.
Defense is definitely a concern for WVU coming into Wednesday’s matchup, as they’ve allowed 75+ points in four of their last five. TCU is the #5 scoring team in the Big 12, but it’s the Horned Frog defense that gives them the edge here as they rank 19th in the country in efficiency at that end of the court.
West Virginia might need to score in the 70s here to pick up the win, and the O/U of 149 would suggest as much. Tre Mitchell scored 16 in Saturday’s loss coming off 14 points and 15 rebounds the game before in the Baylor defeat. WVU really doesn’t have the horsepower offensively to keep up with the Horned Frogs’ Mike Miles, Jr. who averages 19.0 ppg.
Free TCU at West Virginia Betting Pick
This game seems to have trap written all over it, with the 0-5 Mountaineers favored over TCU whose three losses have come by a combined 7 points. This might be a game where it’s one not to overthink regarding the line – as the Horned Frogs have the better defense and more scoring depth.
Free Pick: TCU +2.5
