Big 12 Tournament Preview: Arizona, Houston, Kansas, Iowa State Tournament

The Big 12 Tournament feels like the only conference tournament without a clear winner. Arizona and Houston are the two biggest rivals, but when they’re at their best, Iowa State and Kansas can hang with anyone.

Arizona has been a top-three team in the country for most of the season thanks to the freshman duo of Koa Peat and Brayden Burries. The Wildcats were good, but still felt a little underrated. They have a top-10 offense and defense and have built a core that can compete in March. It may not feel good to go all the way to 7, but come March I tend to favor top heavy teams led by great guard play. They check all the boxes. Betting at +115 is not a bad bet.

But beating Kelvin Sampson in the Big 12 Tournament is no easy task.

This Cougars team looks very familiar to the teams we saw in the 2020s. Their offense isn’t elite, but it’s efficient enough, and their defense is absolute chaos. That said, I don’t like this version of Houston. The frontcourt play is very inconsistent and doesn’t seem to work well for Arizona. Houston has already lost once at home to Arizona this year, and Koa Pitt is also out.

Speaking of inconsistent, it’s Iowa State and Kansas. Iowa State has the best frontcourt in the conference with Milan Momcilovic and Joshua Jefferson. They may be inconsistent, but I really like their experience in March, and this is a team I’ll definitely be watching here.

In Kansas, it’s more than just Darryn Peterson. The trio of Tre White, Flory Bidhunga and Melvin Council Jr lead Bill Self’s top-10 defense. This team lacks a consistent offense, but if they can get a complete game out of Peterson, that problem should be solved. Having Kansas win the Big 12 Tournament, especially at +850, is never a bad bet.

Texas Tech and BYU could make some noise in the Big 12 Tournament, but I don’t like their health situations. Without Tech’s JT Toppin and BYU’s Richie Saunders, I don’t know how either of them would have been able to get much done in March.

If you want to try a true long range shot, Cincinnati might be the team for you. They have continued to play with a full roster and entered the Big 12 Tournament having won six of their last eight. They are quietly the 12th most efficient defensive team in the country, but their offense is starting to come to life. You’ll need to win a few games to get Cincy into the dance, so it’s okay to go for +8000.

I hate betting on teams to win conference tournaments when I don’t have much to spare, but I think this Arizona team is too perfect. I think if they win the Big 12, they will carry this momentum into the Final Four in April.