2024 Big 12 Men’s Basketball Tournament Odds: Betting lines released to win it all
On Tuesday, the Big 12 Tournament will commence, including teams Houston, BYU, Cincinnati and UCF for the first time. With so many fresh faces, it will be even more difficult than usual to emerge victorious from the gauntlet.
In ESPN’s Joe Lunardi’s latest Bracketology, the Big 12 boasted a conference-high nine teams in the NCAA Tournament. Further, others are on the cusp of an at-large berth. Of course, the fate of the team that wins the tournament won’t be left in others’ hands.
On Monday, FanDuel released each team’s odd to bring home the Big 12 title.
Houston Cougars: +100
Houston solidified its résumé for March in the final month of the regular season, downing three top-15 opponents in the country. On Saturday, the Cougars pounced on No. 7 Kansas in devastating 76-46 fashion.
In the win, Houston forced 18 turnovers, converting the Jayhawks’ mistakes into a generous 30 points. With the victory, Houston claimed the Big 12 regular-season title in its first season in the conference. It’s only right the Cougars have the best odds to also reel in the conference tournament crown.
Iowa State Cyclones: +430
Just three days after defeating No. 20 BYU, Iowa State fell 65-58 to Kansas State. The Cyclones looked lethargic in the loss, recording less points off turnovers, second-chance points, fast-break points and offensive rebounds than the Wildcats.
Despite Iowa State’s anticlimactic close to the regular season, Vegas believes the Cyclones have a legitimate chance to win the conference tournament. Iowa State only suffered five losses in conference play. Four of those losses were against ranked foes.
Baylor Bears: +600
Baylor couldn’t escape the weekend without suffering an upset loss. On Saturday, the Bears dropped their final regular season game in double-digit fashion to Texas Tech, ending their three-game win streak.
Baylor will look to bounce back in a big way this week. Despite a wave of success in recent years, the Bears have not reached the Big 12 Tournament Championship since 2014 and have never won the event.
Kansas Jayhawks: +1100
Despite beginning the season as the No. 1 team in the nation, Kansas will enter the Big 12 Tournament as a dark horse. The Jayhawks lost momentum in the backstretch of the season, dropping three of their final four contests.
Most recently, Kansas fell in a 76-46 blowout to No. 1 Houston. Nonetheless, Kansas certainly won’t lie down. With leading scorer Kevin McCullar growing healthier every day, the Jayhawks could easily create chaos this week.
BYU Cougars: +1100
While BYU defeated Kansas 76-68 in Allen Fieldhouse on Feb. 27, Vegas still isn’t convinced the Cougars are the superior squad. BYU went 10-8 this season in conference play, securing wins over Kansas, Baylor and Iowa State.
Obviously, the Cougars are capable. However, they have yet to prove they can be consistent. In 18 games against Big 12 opponents, BYU failed to win more than two straight contests. BYU will have to win four straight games to earn an automatic bid in the NCAA Tournament.
Texas Tech Red Raiders: +1800
The Red Raiders are riding high into the Big 12 Tournament despite outsiders’ low expectations. The team finished fourth in the conference standings, closing the season on a three-game win streak. In its final game of the regular season, the Red Raiders downed the Baylor Bears 78-68.
Texas Tech is 6-4 against Top 25 teams this season. The only Big 12 team with more wins against ranked foes is Kansas. With a two-game bye in the tournament, Texas Tech will have plenty of time to recover from its grueling win over Baylor.
Texas Longhorns: +2400
The Longhorns are bound to catch somebody sleeping in the Big 12 Tournament. Texas has pulled off spellbinding wins this season against highly-touted teams such as Baylor and Texas Tech. Yet, the team has also suffered jaw-dropping losses.
This week, Texas will look to finally put its pieces together to form a masterpiece. History is on its side. The Longhorns have won two of the last three Big 12 Tournaments, defeating Kansas by 20 points last season to claim the throne.
TCU Horned Frogs: +3600
Oklahoma Sooners: +6500
Kansas State Wildcats: +10000
Cincinnati Bearcats: +10000
UCF Knights: +16000
Oklahoma State Cowboys: +25000
West Virginia Mountaineers: +25000