Las Vegas NCAA Prediction: Texas Tech Red Raiders at Missouri Tigers

Saturday, January 28, 2012

by Joe Rodriguez

Frank Haith - Las Vegas NCAA Prediction: Texas Tech Red Raiders at Missouri Tigers

Missouri Tigers' stay as the No. 2 team in the country will be a short one after the Tigers fell at Oklahoma State in an excruciating loss on Wednesday.

Luckily for coach Frank Haith and his players, the next opponent on the schedule is Texas Tech Red Raiders, the Big 12 Conference's cellar dweller.

At 0-7, the Red Raiders are in last place in the conference by two full games, and five of those losses have come by double digits.

Despite Missouri's latest loss, the Tigers are still off to their best start since the 1989-90 season, when they went 21-1. Missouri has won five straight meetings with Texas Tech dating back to 2007 and leads the all-time series 13-8.

- Texas Tech Red Raiders @ Missouri Tigers
When: 1:30 PM ET, Saturday, January 28, 2012
Where: Mizzou Arena, Columbia, Missouri
TV: 1:45 p.m. ET, Big 12 Network
Check Live NCAA Basketball Odds on Justbet Sportsbook .

Justbet Sportsbook currently have the Tigers listed as 24-point favorites versus the Red Raiders.

Texas Tech Red Raiders (7-12): As bad as the start has been for the Red Raiders, this will probably be their toughest test of the season so far. The only positive in a 69-47 home loss to Kansas State on Wednesday was perhaps the emergence of freshman Jordan Tolbert, who posted his first double-digit scoring effort (18 points) since Jan. 4. Tolbert is still second among Big 12 freshmen at 12.8 points per game, but the 6-foot-7 forward had been slumping in conference play. "He's a good player, a talented player, and he's going to become a great player," coach Billy Gillispie said. "But we've given him very little help."

Missouri Tigers (18-2): Both of the Tigers' losses have come on the road in Big 12 play, and both have been the result of defensive breakdowns. In the setback at Oklahoma State, Missouri allowed LeBryan Nash to catch fire from the outside, and the freshman was the catalyst for a late-game run that led to the upset. The Tigers' guard-oriented offense (first in the Big 12 at 82.8 points) is more than potent enough to win a lot of games, but the defense is starting to slip just a little bit in allowing 73 or more points three times in the past four games.

1. Missouri’s senior class is 62-3 at Mizzou Arena in three-plus seasons.

2. The Tigers have five players averaging in double figures, while Texas Tech has only one.

3. The Red Raiders are next-to-last in the Big 12 in both scoring offense (62.5) and scoring defense (67.3).

BASKETBALL PREDICTION: Tigers 84, Red Raiders 58.

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billy gillispie - frank haith - jordan tolbert - lebryan nash - missouri tigers - mizzou arena - texas tech red raiders

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