Iowa State at Baylor odds, picks and predictions
The No. 11 Iowa State Cyclones (16-4, 5-2 Big 12) take on the No. 18 Baylor Bears (15-5, 4-3) Saturday at Foster Pavilion. Tip is set for 8 p.m. ET (ESPN2). Below, we analyze BetMGM Sportsbook's lines around the Iowa State vs. Baylor odds, and make our expert college basketball picks, predictions and best bets.
Iowa State, No. 11 in the Paste BN Sports Coaches Poll, has won 3 in a row and 5 of 6 after a 79-75 victory over Kansas last Saturday. The Cyclones failed to cover as 4.5-point favorites. G Tamin Lipsey (13.9 PPG), G Keshon Gilbert (13.7 PPG) and F Milan Momcilovic (13.1 PPG) evenly distribute the offense. ISU has won the last 3 meetings against Baylor.
Baylor, No. 18 in the Paste BN Sports Coaches Poll, snapped a 3-game skid with a 77-69 victory over Central Florida as a 4-point favorite Wednesday. Freshman G Ja'Kobe Walter leads the squad with 14.9 PPG, but he had just 8 in 2 of the last 4 games.
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Iowa State at Baylor odds
Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access Paste BN Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 10:15 a.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Iowa State +150 (bet $100 to win $150) | Baylor -185 (bet $185 to win $100)
- Against the spread (ATS): Iowa State +3.5 (-105) | Baylor -3.5 (-115)
- Over/Under (O/U): 142.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
Iowa State at Baylor picks and predictions
Prediction
Iowa State 71, Baylor 69
Moneyline
This is a closer matchup than the -185 odds on Baylor would suggest because there's just a 3.5-point spread. If there's a chance to take, it's here on the ML. I'll take that chance on ISU. It's 2nd in the nation in defensive rating at 89.9 and 3rd in steals at 11.2 per game. Baylor is just 1 game removed from suffering 3 straight losses to unranked foes. This begins a stretch of 4 straight games against ranked opponents, which they are 1-1 against thus far.
Iowa State is battle-tested at 3-3 against ranked teams thus far, including a win over No. 2 Houston. The Cyclones are hitting their stride at 11-2 over the last 13.
Toss a small-unit wager on IOWA STATE (+150).
Against the spread
Since we're taking the plus-money odds on the ML, I'm skipping the spread.
PASS.
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Over/Under
Baylor is 15th in the nation at 84.7 PPG, but as mentioned, ISU's defense is legit. It allowed Texas A&M to post 73 points on it earlier in the year, but it held the other 5 ranked opponents under that. Even if I liked the Over here, we'd be getting in the game late as it opened at 145.5. ISU is 13-7 O/U this year, and Baylor is 11-8.
LEAN UNDER 142.5 (-110).
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