Northern Colorado Bears vs Texas Longhorns Prediction, Odds, Best Bets - Week 1
No. 6 Texas beat Fairleigh Dickinson by 20 behind 24 from Madison Booker, and Northern Colorado just scored 102 behind Heather Baymon and Tatum West. Saturday night at the Moody Center, the Longhorns are favored by 34.5 against a 23-win team that can score.
The Matchup
Northern Colorado scored 102 points in its opener, and the two players who drove it are the story of this game. The Bears beat Hastings 102-76 on Monday behind Heather Baymon, who scored 30 points with 5 assists, and Tatum West, who scored 23 points with 17 rebounds. Mia Galbraith added 14 points, and Northern Colorado shot 56 percent as a team with 12 three-pointers. Baymon, West, Galbraith and Alex Pirog carry no injury designations for Saturday night.
Texas had a sterner opener and a louder star. The Longhorns, ranked No. 6, beat Fairleigh Dickinson 85-65 on Wednesday behind Madison Booker, who scored 24 points with 7 rebounds and 5 assists. Breya Cunningham added 21 points and 13 rebounds, and Texas grabbed 20 offensive rebounds as a team.
One game apiece is all this season offers so far, so last season still says more about these two teams. Texas finished 35-4 last season, scoring 83.9 points per game and allowing 55.8. Northern Colorado finished 23-11, scoring 68.5 and allowing 60.6.
The Bears did their scoring against an overmatched opener opponent, and nothing in Austin will look like Hastings. But a 23-win team with a guard who just scored 30 and a forward who just grabbed 17 rebounds is not the usual visitor a spread like this is built for, and that is where Saturday night at the Moody Center gets interesting.
Key Factors
Start with what Texas does to teams like this. The Longhorns allowed 55.8 points per game last season, and their size on the offensive glass is the underdog killer: 20 offensive rebounds against Fairleigh Dickinson means missed shots turn into second chances until the margin breaks open.
Cunningham opened with 21 points and 13 rebounds, and West is the one Bear who has to hold the glass against her. If West picks up early fouls, Northern Colorado loses its rebounder and its second-best scorer at the same time, and this game can get away fast.
The case for the points is that Northern Colorado can score with its best five. Baymon runs the offense and just put up 30, West scores inside, and the Bears made 12 three-pointers in the opener. Underdogs covering numbers in the mid-30s usually do it by making shots, and this team just made them for a full game.
Texas's own opener is the other half of the case. The Longhorns beat Fairleigh Dickinson by 20, a good win that never turned into a rout, and Booker played 32 minutes to get there. A spread of 34.5 asks Texas to nearly double that margin against a better team than the one it just played. Northern Colorado does not have to win a quarter in Austin to cover. It has to keep scoring. Take the points.
Texas should win this game at home, and Madison Booker is the best player on the floor by a wide margin. But Northern Colorado's two best players just carried an offense that scored in bunches, and Texas did not run away from Fairleigh Dickinson in its opener the way this number requires. Take the points with Northern Colorado Bears +34.5 at -110.
Game Information
| Date | Saturday (11/7) |
|---|---|
| Start Time | 7:00 PM CT |
| How to Watch | SECN+ |
| Venue | Moody Center, Austin |
| Spread | Texas Longhorns -34.5 |
| Total | 132.5 |
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