We wrap up an exciting college basketball regular season with a big-time Big 12 showdown: No. 10-ranked Texas Tech (22-8) vs. BYU (20-10) matchup at the Marriott Center in Provo, Utah.
This will be the second meeting of the season between BYU and Texas Tech, with the Red Raiders winning the first game at home, 84-71.
Texas Tech vs. BYU tips off late-night college basketball action at 10:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, live on ESPN, in what's expected to be a close game, with BYU currently a 1.5-point favorite, via PrizePicks Team Picks.
Below, we’ll break down our Texas Tech vs. BYU prediction and picks for Saturday’s CBB game. Make your college basketball picks on PrizePicks and PrizePicks Team Picks and earn real money if you’re right, including on game winners, spreads, and totals for college basketball games.
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Texas Tech vs. BYU Prediction, Spread, Over/Under
An incredible Texas Tech season took a hit when JT Toppin went down with an ACL injury vs. Arizona State three games ago. Despite that loss, Tech did collect an impressive road win at Iowa State before dropping a tough home game to unranked TCU.
This Red Raiders team could still do some damage in the upcoming tournaments, but it’s clear that their ceiling has been greatly lowered following the loss of the potential Big 12 Player of the Year.
The BYU Cougars know a thing or two about season-changing injuries in their own right, as they lost star senior and NBA prospect Richie Saunders in mid-February to an ACL injury.
Saunders was averaging a career-high 18 points and 5.8 rebounds per game, and his shooting was a perfect fit alongside All-World freshman AJ Dybantsa and dynamic sophomore G Rob Wright III.
The Cougars have dropped four of their last five games without Saunders in the lineup and — much like Texas Tech, have a considerably lower ceiling going forward.
Potential first-overall NBA Draft pick AJ Dybantsa has taken his game to another level without Saunders, increasing his scoring average from 24.8 with him to 27.2 in games without him.
Texas Tech vs. BYU Spread, Over/Under for Saturday, March 7
The BYU Cougars enter Saturday’s game as 1.5-point home favorites, returning a 1.69x payout on PrizePicks Team Picks if they win outright.
The Red Raiders are road underdogs with a 2x payout if they win, via PrizePicks Team Picks.
- Spread: BYU Cougars -1.5 (1.75x payout)
- Over/Under: 159.5 (1.92x payout on over)
- Game Winner Payout: Red Raiders 2x | Cougars 1.69x
Team Picks payouts are live as of publishing and are subject to change.
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Texas Tech vs. BYU Prediction on Spread
Here are some stats to know to help you make your Texas Tech vs. BYU prediction on the spread on Saturday, March 7, in college basketball action.
- BYU is 12-18-0 (40%) against the spread (ATS) this season, tied for the worst covering percentage in the Big 12.
- At home, that percentage drops to 35.9% as the Cougs are 5-9-0 ATS in Provo.
- With both injuries factored in, KenPom has Texas Tech with a net rating 4.32 points above BYU (+26.52 vs +22.20).
- According to Bart Torvik, Texas Tech ranks higher in both adjusted offensive efficiency (7th) and adjusted defensive efficiency (27th) than BYU, which ranks 16th and 99th in those categories, respectively.
- Both Toppin and Saunders had great games in the last meeting between these two teams, but it’s still worth noting that Tech covered with ease in that outing, winning 84-71.
Texas Tech vs. BYU College Basketball Picks for PrizePicks – Saturday, March 7
Here are two of the top Texas Tech vs. BYU picks to target for Saturday, March 7, on PrizePicks. Player picks via PrizePicks are headlined by G Donovan Atwell and F AJ Dybantsa.
Texas Tech G Donovan Atwell vs. BYU Projection: 21 Pts + Rebs + Asts
- Atwell has really stepped up in JT Toppin's absence, leading the team in scoring in three of the four games and is averaging 18.75 points per game over that timespan, up from his season-long average of 13.3 points.
- Perhaps more importantly, in the four games without Toppin, he has only been on the bench for nine total minutes.
- Atwell is averaging 38 minutes per game without Toppin, up from 34.4 in games with him.
- The Cougars are allowing opponents to shoot 34.4% from 3-point range, ranking 201st nationally.
- This is music to the ears of Atwell, who is averaging both a career-high in attempts (8.4) and shooting percentage from deep (45.8%).
- This is a big pace-up game for the Red Raiders, who are ranked 221st overall in pace compared to the Cougars at a blistering 46th.
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BYU F AJ Dybantsa vs. Texas Tech Projection: 38.5 Pts + Rebs + Asts
- Dybantsa has somehow taken his already impressive game to another level in the absence of Richie Saunders. In the six games without Saunders, he is averaging 38.8 points, rebounds, and assists (PRA) per game.
- Without Saunders, he has exceeded this projection in three out of the six games he has played.
- The potential first overall pick is averaging 2.1 more points, 1.7 more rebounds, and 1.6 more assists per game at home than on the road.
- Despite being the 10th-ranked team in the country, Texas Tech ranks just 72nd in defensive effective field goal percentage at 49.1%.
- There could also be plenty of opportunities on the glass for Dybantsa, as Texas Tech ranks 73rd in offensive rebounding percentage (33.8%) and 142nd in defensive rebounding percentage (29.6%).
Make Texas Tech vs. BYU College BasketPicks on PrizePicks for Saturday’s
Both Texas Tech and BYU will be missing a key contributor in tonight’s game, but for us, all that matters is who will step up in their absence.
Texas Tech vs. BYU picks for Big 12 college basketball are just one of many ways fans can get in on tonight's college basketball action.
You can make your picks on PrizePicks and PrizePicks Team Picks and earn real money. Just pick players, predict More or Less on their projected stats, and cash in if you’re correct. With Team Picks, make predictions on winners, spreads, and over/unders, now available in 35 states.
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