Mid February Big 12 Round up: A mess in the middle
I’m not sure if you’d describe the Big XII as cannibalistic or not, but when literally any team is capable of beating anyone on any given night, I’m not sure what else you’d call it. Anyway, it was another busy two weeks in the conference with conference giants facing off and one of the newcomers making waves. As per usual, we’ll let you know how each team fared, proceed in alphabetical order, and exclude the Jayhawks for obvious reasons.
Baylor: 18-6 overall, 7-4 in conference
Outside of the loss at Allen Fieldhouse to a depleted Kansas, Baylor had a great two weeks. They started the month by beating a difficult Iowa State team in Waco and followed that by taking down the Texas Tech Red Raiders in Waco as well. After the Kansas loss, the Bears beat Oklahoma, again at home, and have themselves well poised for a run at the conference crown.
BYU: 18-6 overall, 6-5 in conference
BYU has surged in the last two weeks, winning three of four and inching over the .500 mark in conference play. They started the month with two away games, splitting those two, winning in Morgantown and losing in Norman. Back in the friendly confines in their home of Provo, they’ve reeled off two straight, against K-State and UCF.
Cincinnati: 15-9 overall, 4-7 in conference
The Bearcats were one of the teams that played three games since the start of the month. They started off well by going on the road and beating Texas Tech but have since lost two home games. There’s no shame in losing games to the league leaders (Houston and Iowa State), but the rest of the conference could’ve used a helping hand from Cincinnati. Oh well.
Houston: 21-3 overall, 8-3 in conference
Since losing that epic battle with Kansas, Houston has taken care of business against inferior opponents. They beat hapless Oklahoma State at home and went on the road to beat Cincy.
Iowa State: 19-5 overall, 8-3 in conference
After losing on the road to Baylor, the Cyclones have ripped off three straight wins. They’ve won away at Texas and Cincinnati and mixed in a home win against TCU for good measure. Iowa State is rolling right now.
Kansas State: 15-9 overall, 5-6 in conference
I guess it should not be surprising that K-State’s lone win this month was their home Super Bowl to Kansas as they always circle that game on the calendar. And as per usual, they expended all their energy in that one and came out flat in the game after, losing to BYU. Add in a loss to last place Oklahoma State before the Kansas game, and it wasn’t a great stretch for the Wildcats.
Oklahoma: 18-7 overall, 6-6 in conference
Oklahoma is a hard team to figure out, but they typically win the games that they’re supposed to and lose the ones you’d expect. The 6-6 conference record backs that up. In February, they’ve lost away to UCF and Baylor and won at home against BYU and OSU. Sounds about right? So, the question remains, are they “supposed” to beat a banged up Kansas team at home or is that one entering the loss column for the Sooners?
Oklahoma State: 10-14 overall, 2-9 in conference
Oklahoma State got a nice home win against K-State but since then, they’ve lost to Houston and Oklahoma. The team will be playing on the opening day of the Big XII tournament.
TCU: 17-7 overall, 6-5 in conference
The Horned Frogs started the month with losses at home to Texas and away at Iowa State. Since then, they have taken care of business in their home arena against West Virginia
Texas: 16-8 overall, 5-6 in conference
Texas is one of a handful of teams locked in the middle of the pack with a 5-6 record, the first two weeks of the month helping their NCAA tournament cause with a road win at TCU. Since then they’ve lost to Iowa State and beaten West Virginia. This team is balancing on the bubble and the next two weeks will be critical.
Texas Tech: 18-6 overall, 7-4 in conference
Texas Tech went two and two since we last published an article of this nature and this team has done more to affect the top of the league table than almost anyone. This time, they lost to Baylor and beat Kansas. Mix in a bad loss to Cincy at home and a win against UCF, also in Lubbock and you have a team that can, at times, be very difficult to predict.
UCF: 13-10 overall, 4-7 in conference
The Knights got a nice win in Orlando against Oklahoma but have since lose away to both Texas Tech and BYU. They’ve been a nice story, but will likely have to make a deep run in the postseason tournament to get a shot at the big dance.
West Virginia: 8-16 overall, 3-8 in conference
In what is truly a rebuilding year after Bob Huggins was dismissed, the Mountaineers are winless in February with losses to BYU, Texas, and TCU. Could that Kansas shooting performance have been any bigger of a fluke? This team is not good.
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