The Missouri Tigers, after a rough week in the No. 2 spot, will look to start anew tonight as they face Big 12 rival Texas at the Frank Erwin Special Events Center in Austin, Texas. This evening’s Big Monday conference clash between the Tigers and Longhorns is scheduled to get underway at 9:00pm ET on ESPN. NCAA Basketball Point Spreads have Missouri listed as a -1 against the spread road favorite; the game total is set at 145.5 points.
After moving up to No. 2 following its impressive road win at Baylor, Missouri experienced a major letdown on Wednesday night. The Tigers went into Stillwater and fell 79-72 to an Oklahoma State team that needed the victory just to get to 10 wins for the season.
Missouri (19-2 overall, 6-2 Big 12) did bounce back, though, just not in the most thrilling fashion as it struggled somewhat with a lowly Red Raiders squad on Saturday. Frank Haith’s troops won the game 63-50 in Columbia, but most expected the Tigers to route Texas Tech by a minimum of 20 points. Poor shooting was largely responsible for Mizzou’s inability to do so as it hit just 19 of its 48 shot attempts.
Marcus Denmon and Kim English were the only two Tigers to score in double figures, finishing the game with 19 and 22 points respectively. Missouri’s defense picked up the slack, however, recording 13 steals while forcing the Red Raiders into 21 turnovers.
Suffice it to say the Tigers will need a better performance to get past the Longhorns this evening. Texas’ 13-8 overall record and its 3-5 conference mark are not the most impressive, but Rick Barnes’ squad has given almost every league foe a rough go this season.
The road has certainly been the Longhorns bugaboo with the team losing at Iowa State, Missouri, Kansas State, and Baylor, but home has provided a solid advantage for J’Covan Brown and company. Texas has knocked off Oklahoma State, Texas A&M, and Iowa State in Austin, and it nearly upset conference leader Kansas there on January 21st (69-66).
Missouri has won four of the last five in this series and it is the better team right now, but, given the way Texas has played at the Frank Erwin Center, the Longhorns getting points looks attractive.
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Missouri vs Texas 2012 NCAAB Picks: Provided by SBG Global
Missouri Tigers -1 (-110), Over 145.5 (-110)
Texas Longhorns +1 (-110), Under 145.5 (-110)
