Free College Basketball Picks Today: Kansas Jayhawks vs West Virginia Mountaineers 3/9/23

The Kansas Jayhawks (25-6, 13-5 Big 12) face off against the West Virginia Mountaineers (19-13, 8-11 Big 12) Thursday at T-Mobile Center in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Conference Tourney.

West Virginia beat the Texas Tech Red Raiders 78-62 at T-Mobile Center yesterday in the first round, their third win in a row. Kedrian Johnson had a standout performance with 20 points and six rebounds.

Kansas came up short on Saturday at Moody Center, falling to the Texas Longhorns 75-59 to close out their regular season. Jalen Wilson had 23 points and 10 rebounds in defeat to lead the team.

Kansas swept the regular season against West Virginia, earning the win in both of their matchups, the most recent of which was a 76-74 victory at Allen Fieldhouse on February 25, their fifth straight head-to-head victory. Erik Stevenson led both teams in scoring with 23 points in the losing effort.

Dajuan Harris Jr. had 17 points, six assists, and six steals for the Jayhawks. Stevenson is averaging 15.6 points per game to lead the Mountaineers in scoring this season. Meanwhile, Tre Mitchell is grabbing 5.4 rebounds per game, and Johnson is dishing 3.1 assists.

Wilson’s 19.7 points per game have powered the Jayhawks on offense. Wilson also has pulled down 8.4 rebounds per game. Harris Jr. has tallied 6.3 assists per game.

The Jayhawks are shooting 46.4% from the field, ranking as one of the most accurate field goal shooting teams in the league (2nd). In the last 10 games, West Virginia is 6-4 with an average margin of +2.8 (76.6-73.8). Kansas has an 8-2 record over the last 10, scoring 74.8 points per game on average while holding opponents to 69.8 (+5.0 margin).

MOUNTAINEERS HOT/COLD

(Last Five | Season Average | Differential)
Points + Rebounds + Assists:
Erik Stevenson: 30.2 | 21.6 | +8.6
Mohamed Wague: 2.0 | 6.5 | -4.5
Points per game:
Erik Stevenson: 22.8 | 15.6 | +7.2
Joe Toussaint: 6.4 | 9.4 | -3.0
Rebounds per game:
Emmitt Matthews Jr.: 5.0 | 3.7 | +1.3

JAYHAWKS HOT/COLD

(Last Five | Season Average | Differential)
Points + Rebounds + Assists:
Joseph Yesufu: 2.4 | 4.9 | -2.5
Points per game:
Dajuan Harris Jr.: 11.6 | 8.6 | +3.0
Assists per game:
Jalen Wilson: 1.8 | 2.5 | -0.7

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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.