K-State Wildcats vs. BYU Cougars: TV, time, odds, game preview + score prediction

The Kansas State men’s basketball team will try to build off a recent win over rival KU when it travels to BYU on Saturday at Marriott Center.

Here’s everything you need to know before tipoff, plus a score prediction:

When: 9 p.m. Saturday

Where: Marriott Center (Provo, Utah)

TV: ESPN2

Radio: KCSP (610 AM) in Kansas City, KFH (1240 AM and 97.5 FM) in Wichita

Betting line: BYU by 9.5

Over/Under: 141.5

STARTING LINEUPS

About BYU (16-6, 4-5)

The Cougars are having a strong debut season in the Big 12, but it hasn’t been easy for them to build a long winning streak in conference play. BYU is coming off a road loss against Oklahoma that dropped it below .500 in league play. The Cougars will search for more consistency with back-to-back home games coming up against K-State and UCF. Mark Pope’s team is balanced on both sides of the ball. It shoots 36.2% from 3-point range and 59% from two-point range. But it limits opponents to 30% and 47.1% from those same areas. The Cougars like to shoot 3-pointers, as they have made at least seven outside shots in every game this season. Jaxson Robinson is their leading scorer.

About Kansas State (15-8, 5-5)

The Wildcats are coming off an overtime victory against rival Kansas in which they made nine 3-pointers and made it difficult for the Jayhawks to score. Tylor Perry has been on a hot streak of late, scoring at least 19 points in his past three games. He went for a season-high 26 against KU. Cam Carter also had a big game against the Jayhawks with 19 points. Expect Jerome Tang to stick with the same starting lineup he has used in the past two games. The Wildcats got off to solid starts in both of those games, and big men David N’Guessan and Will McNair seem to have accepted their new roles coming off the bench.

K-State at BYU score prediction

Winning road games in the Big 12 has never felt harder than it does right now.

Houston and Iowa State are both 2-3 in conference road games this season. Kansas is 1-4 and Baylor is 2-2. Those are the teams at the top of the league standings.

K-State, for the record, is 1-4 away from home in Big 12 play with its only victory coming early last month at West Virginia.

With that in mind, you better have a compelling reason to pick a Big 12 team to pull off a road upset, regardless of the team they are about to play against.

I’m not sure I have one for K-State heading into its next game at 9 p.m. on Saturday at BYU. The Cougars are 11-2 at home this season with recent lopsided victories over Texas (84-72) and Iowa State (87-72) inside Marriott Center.

BYU is understandably a large favorite in this game. Not only has it been a stronger team than K-State this season, this is a good bounce-back spot for the Cougars. They are coming off a discouraging loss at Oklahoma, and a pair of upcoming home games will give them an opportunity to fix what has been ailing them in conference play.

K-State, on the other hand, is fresh off its biggest win of the season at home against KU.

The Cougars will have both home court and motivation on their side. That is not a good combination for the road team.

In order to pull off an upset against BYU, the Wildcats will need to make shots from the outside. The Cougars have been susceptible against the 3-pointer this season, as they have allowed at least eight 3-pointers in five straight games. Unfortunately, the Wildcats are only averaging 31.2% from behind the arc this season. Can they take advantage?

Another question: Can K-State prevent BYU from draining 3-pointers on the other end? When the Cougars get hot, they can make as many outside shots as any team in all of college basketball.

I’m not sure the Wildcats have enough offense to keep up with the Cougars on the road.

BYU 75, K-State 63

Last game prediction: KU 75, K-State 70. (Actual result: K-State 75, KU 70)

Season Record: 18-5

Season Record ATS: 12-11

Season Record O/U: 17-6