Texas Tech vs. Kansas Expert Pick and Prediction – March 1, 2025

AUBURN VS. KENTUCKY EXPERT PICK AND PREDICTION – March 1, 2025 — What does Kansas have left? The Jayhawks have appeared to be circling the drain over the past two weeks, but they’ve won their past two games to seemingly pull themselves out of the dive.

However, there’s a question as to whether the Jayhawks have actually done anything or if they just got a break in the schedule. Their past three wins aren’t exactly worth writing home about: a sweep of Colorado and a home win over Oklahoma State. Given that both the Buffaloes and the Cowboys will be playing on day one in the Big 12 tournament, that doesn’t exactly move the needle.

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Beating Texas Tech would. But there’s no guarantee that Kansas can do that, given that the Jayhawks haven’t really played well since January. And the Red Raiders have actually played quite well on the road in the Big 12, going 6-2 away from home. The only losses have come to Arizona and TCU, neither of which was a bad loss.

And while Allen Fieldhouse remains one of the most intimidating environments in college basketball, part of that is because of the team that plays there. And with the Jayhawks not really themselves, Texas Tech has a real shot to get a win here.

The Odds

Tipoff

When: Saturday, March 1 at 2 p.m.

Where: Allen Fieldhouse, Lawrence, Kan.

TV: ESPN

Public Bets: Unavailable

Public Money: Unavailable

Texas Tech vs. Kansas In-Season Trends

To say Texas Tech doesn’t like coming to Lawrence is a little like saying fire doesn’t like water. The Red Raiders have made 22 trips to Allen Fieldhouse and have a grand total of one victory, that coming in 2019. And that was the year where Texas Tech reached the national title game, so it’s obviously not something that happens often.

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Covering against Kansas, however, hasn’t been an issue. The Red Raiders are 4-2 ATS in their past six games against the Jayhawks, and 2-1 ATS at Allen Fieldhouse in that stretch. The past two games have both gone under, a hallmark to the defense the Red Raiders play under Grant McCasland.

The Difference-Makers

Hunter Dickinson does most of everything for Kansas. The Jayhawks knew that they would make their entire team around him when he transferred from Michigan, and that has been a mixed bag. Dickinson has been great, but the Jayhawks often don’t know what to do when Plan A doesn’t work.

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JT Toppin has proven an accurate shooter, a big thing on a team like Texas Tech. The Red Raiders believe in making the most out of every possession, and they’ve done a fine job in getting the most out of Toppin. At 55.7% from the floor, he’s always a threat to score because he takes smart shots when they fall to him.

The Pick

In a normal situation, picking against Kansas would be insane. But the Jayhawks have clearly not been right for some time, and beating Oklahoma State and Colorado doesn’t change that fact. Kansas is still a good team, but this is nowhere near Bill Self’s Big 12 championship teams. These Jayhawks are vulnerable, and Texas Tech has already won at Houston. The Red Raiders aren’t going to be intimidated at Allen Fieldhouse this year.