The BYU Cougars take on the West Virginia Mountaineers in Morgantown, WV, on Saturday, Feb. 28. Tip-off is set for 5:30 p.m. ET on FOX.
BYU is favored by -1.5 points on the spread with a moneyline of -125. West Virginia, meanwhile, enters as a +1.5 underdog and is +105 on the moneyline to pull off the upset. The over/under sits at 140.5 total points.
Here’s my BYU vs. West Virginia predictions and college basketball picks for Saturday, February 28.
BYU vs West Virginia Prediction
My Pick: West Virginia ML +105
My BYU vs West Virginia best bet is on the Mountaineers to win outright. For all of your college basketball bets, be sure to find the best lines by using our live NCAAB odds page.
BYU vs West Virginia Odds
| BYU Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-1.5 -110 | 140.5 -110o / -110u | -125 |
| West Virginia Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+1.5 -110 | 140.5 -110o / -110u | +105 |
- BYU vs West Virginia Spread: BYU -1.5, West Virginia +1.5
- BYU vs West Virginia Over/Under: 140.5 Points
- BYU vs West Virginia Moneyline: BYU -125, West Virginia +105
BYU vs West Virginia College Basketball Betting Preview
BYU Basketball
BYU comes into this game 20-8 overall and 8-7 in the Big 12, following its 97-84 loss to UCF.
Hand up, I'm a sucker for a Cougar and fell for the trap when I bet BYU to cover the spread against UCF, thinking its defense had turned a corner. You have my word that I will not fall for that trap again.
Over its last nine games, BYU is 3-6 with the 19th-ranked offense and 188th-ranked defense, according to Bart Torvik.
To go more in depth on the defensive struggles, the Cougars rank 338th in field-goal percentage allowed, giving up 55.6% from 2 and 40.1% from 3 while ranking 323rd in defensive turnover rate. To be quite frank, this team can't stop anything or anyone.
AJ Dybantsa continues to light it up on the offensive end, sitting as the nation's leading scorer at 25.1 points per game. He has scored 29 points on 50% shooting or better in back-to-back games and will be heavily relied on to continue his big-scoring nights with efficient shooting.
Rob Wright has struggled from the field in the last three games, averaging 13 points on 33% from the field. He'll need to do a better job of picking his spots against a disciplined West Virginia defense.
West Virginia Basketball
West Virginia sits at 16-12 overall and 7-8 in the Big 12, finding itself on a three-game losing streak after suffering an overtime defeat at the hands of Oklahoma State.
The Mountaineers boast the 23rd-best defense in the country, according to KenPom, but their offense has been awful in the last month.
In their last nine games, they're 3-6 overall while averaging 61.7 points per game with the 285th-rated offense in the country.
The Mountaineers rank 335th in effective field-goal percentage, 330th in free-throw rate, 360th in 3-point shooting and 283rd in turnover rate over that time, per Bart Torvik.
The overtime loss to Oklahoma State was the first time WVU scored over 80 points since its 86-75 win over Kansas on Jan. 10.
The good news for WVU? Honor Huff got back to his old ways against Oklahoma State, scoring 20 points on 6-of-12 shooting from deep.
If WVU wants to win this game, Huff will have to knock down some shots that force BYU to focus on him, allowing other teammates to get easier looks.
BYU vs West Virginia Pick, Betting Analysis
West Virginia started the year 13-0 at home and has since dropped three straight to Baylor, Texas Tech and Utah. During this three-game home losing streak, Huff is averaging 7.6 points per game on 37.6% shooting from the field.
BYU's defense continues to struggle, allowing opponents to shoot 40% from 3 over the last nine games. The Cougars will have their hands full guarding Huff and Treysen Eaglestaff, who combined to shoot 10-of-20 from 3 at Oklahoma State.
Though West Virginia has had offensive struggles, it still has a top-25 defense in the country. That defense will disrupt BYU's offensive flow, while the Mountaineers offense capitalizes on playing bad BYU defense.
My Pick: West Virginia ML +105
