Kansas vs. Oklahoma State Prediction, Odds, Key Players for Tuesday, Jan. 16

Oklahoma State's Quion Williams dribbles the ball against Texas Tech in a Big 12 conference
Oklahoma State's Quion Williams dribbles the ball against Texas Tech in a Big 12 conference / Olivia Raymond/For the Avalanche-Journal
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Kansas heads to Stillwater to face a desperate Oklahoma State team, who is winless in Big 12 play.

The Jayhawks got back on track after losing to UCF in Big 12 play by winning by double digits at home, can the team solve its road woes with a convincing win at Oklahoma State? The Pokes have been blown out in two of three Big 12 contests, is this a good buy-low opportunity?

Here's our betting preview for this Big 12 contest:

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Kansas vs. Oklahoma State Odds, Spread and Total

Oklahoma State vs. Kansas Betting Trends

  • Oklahoma State is 5-10-1 against the spread (ATS) this season
  • Kansas is 6-9-1 ATS this season
  • Oklahoma State is 0-4 ATS as an underdog this season

Kansas vs. Oklahoma State How to Watch

  • Date: Tuesday, January 16th
  • Game Time: 9:00 PM EST
  • Venue: Gallagher-Iba Arena
  • How to Watch (TV): ESPN
  • [Away Team] Record: 14-2
  • [Home Team] Record: 8-8

Kansas vs. Oklahoma State Key Players to Watch

Kansas

Hunter Dickinson: Dickinson didn't look hobbled by a knee injury, scoring 24 points on 11-of-16 shooting against Oklahoma. Of course, it's something to keep an eye on, but this is an elite interior defense in Oklahoma State, top 30 in the country in near-rim field goal percentage.

Oklahoma State

Javon Small: Small, an ECU transfer, is averaging nearly 15 points per game while grabbing four rebounds and dishing out five assists for the Pokes, hitting 40% of his threes. The Cowboys are struggling on offense in Big 12 play and will need Small to do the heavy lifting as the team is posting a sub-50% effective field goal percentage.

Kansas vs. Oklahoma State Prediction and Pick

I'm going to take the points with Oklahoma State as the warning signs are up on the Jayhawks.

The Jayhawks are sliding back in several advanced metrics like KenPom and ShotQuality, as noted in our weekly futures article. SQ has the Jayhawks rated as the 32nd-best team in the country, and three games worse than its actual record based on expected shooting metrics.

Kansas is a good three-point shooting team, top 50 in the country, but shoots from beyond the arc at the 322nd-highest rate. The team will be driving into the teeth of the Cowboys' defense which is elite, which was mentioned above. Overall, Oklahoma State is 70th in two-point field goal percentage allowed at just 47%.

The Pokes do a great job cleaning the glass and limiting free throw attempts so Kansas may have plenty of empty possessions. On defense, the team is outside the top 200 in turnover percentage, so the team may not take advantage of Oklahoma State's sloppy ball handling (305th in TO%).

Kansas failed to cover as seven-point road favorites at UCF last week and find themselves in a similar situation. I'll grab the falling knife and play Oklahoma State to make this a rock fight on Tuesday night at home.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

Track Reed's bets here!