Raiders Will Be Seeing Red After Ugly Loss On Saturday

Kansas vs. Texas Tech, 9:00 ET

Things tend to ebb and flow for me, both in life and sports betting. Some weeks, I'll feel like my entire body doesn't hurt, and others, I'll have a ridiculous pain somewhere that I can't even explain. There are times when my bets are all hitting, and others where it seems like I can't catch a break. Ask any sports bettor and you'll know pretty quickly how serious they are by the amount they talk about winning. Realistic bettors will tell you it is not easy and it is a grind. There are very profitable people out there, and I like to consider myself as profitable, but I also know when to adjust and adapt. The first month or so of the NCAA I was crushing it. The last month or so, I've struggled a bit - that's when the plays become less frequent, and the unit size goes down. Still, I'm not going to stop firing, and I have one in the chamber for Kansas vs. Texas Tech.

Kansas is a team that just got me for a bit of money the other day as I took them to drop a game to BYU. Well, maybe not drop the game, but I did expect BYU to at least cover the 4.5 spread that I had. Unfortunately, they lost by eight and I lost a unit. It was a great game for anyone who watched it. It paired two top prospects for the NBA. If you watched the first half of that game, you probably walked away saying that Darryn Peterson is the better choice to be called first in the draft. He only played 20 minutes in the game, but scored 18 points on 6-of-8 shooting. I didn't really realize this, but maybe there is a reason for concern with Peterson, because he has only played in 11 of Kansas' 21 games, and he has only hit 30+ minutes in four of those games. Overall, the Jayhawks don't seem like they fully need him. They are 16-5 for the season and ranked as the 14th best team in the nation. They have won five straight games, and the majority of them have been by comfortable margins. 

Kansas coach Bill Self out against Howard. (Credit: Getty Images)

Texas Tech doesn't have a prospect that is likely to be a top-3 pick in the upcoming draft, but they do field a very strong roster and are ranked ahead of the Jayhawks (at least for now). The team is also 16-5 for the season, but they just suffered their second conference loss, dropping a game to UCF on the road on Saturday. Looking back, that's probably a game they will regret losing, because realistically, even on the road, the Red Raiders should be able to comfortably beat UCF. Basketball is a tough sport, and sometimes shots fall for one team and not another. That's why you play the games, I suppose. In any case, they only have four other losses on the schedule so far, and those came against Houston and Illinois on the road, and Arkansas and Purdue in neutral settings. The advantage the Red Raiders are likely to have is down low with JT Toppin. He is one of the better forwards in the country and should be able to use his height and athleticism to keep Texas Tech in the majority of games, including this one.

I'm not really sure if Peterson is suiting up for this one or not. He left the game early against BYU and never returned. As mentioned, it didn't really matter. Kansas sustained the comeback and second half from BYU anyway. I like taking teams that come off of losses and return home. Especially if they are good teams. Kansas is playing good basketball, and I fully expect this to be a high scoring game, but I think the right side here is Texas Tech. They should have a good advantage down low, and I think (especially if Peterson is out - which I think he plays, he was out due to cramping) they can match up decently in the backcourt. I'll split a unit here and take the over and Texas Tech. 

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