Oklahoma State Cowboys vs Texas A&M Aggies Prediction, Odds, Best Bets - Week 2

Oklahoma State and Texas A&M are a combined 5-0 and both are scoring over 100 points a game. Something has to give at Reed Arena in the best game on the Thursday slate.

The Matchup

Oklahoma State visits Texas A&M on Thursday night at Reed Arena in College Station, with Texas A&M a 7.5-point favorite, a total of 177.5, on SECN+. It is the best game on the Thursday slate: a Big 12 team at an SEC team, both unbeaten, both scoring in bunches, and neither yet tested by anyone close to its own level.

Oklahoma State is 2-0 this season, scoring 104.5 points a game and allowing 64.0, with home wins of 91-60 over Incarnate Word and 118-68 over Queens University. Texas A&M is 3-0, scoring 103.0 and allowing 66.7, with home wins of 97-66 over Alabama State, 104-67 over Northern Kentucky and 108-67 over UL Monroe. Last season tells a more honest story about both defenses: Oklahoma State went 20-15 while scoring 83.9 points a game and allowing 83.2, and Texas A&M went 22-12 while scoring 86.1 and allowing 78.9. The stingy defensive numbers so far belong to the schedules, not to some sudden transformation, and this game will be played at the fast, loose pace those last season numbers suggest.

There is nobody to monitor on the injury front. Andrija Grbovic, Parker Robinson and the Oklahoma State rotation carry no injury designations, and neither do PJ Haggerty or anyone else for Texas A&M.

Key Factors

Oklahoma State's edge is depth, and it is not subtle. Against Queens, the Cowboys' best scorer came off the bench: Grbovic scored 17 points in 17 minutes and made 5 of his 6 three-point tries. Parker Robinson added 14 points on a perfect 5-of-5 shooting night, also off the bench, and Latrell Allmond had 12 points and 6 rebounds in reserve minutes.

Julius Halaifonua started and still produced 13 points with 3 blocks. A team whose second unit outscores most starting fives does not fold when the road crowd gets loud, because the scoring never depends on one guy surviving a bad night.

Texas A&M's weakness, so far, is that nothing about its 3-0 start has been examined yet. The Aggies have won by 31, 37 and 41 points, all at home, against Alabama State, Northern Kentucky and UL Monroe. Haggerty scored 22 points in 20 minutes against UL Monroe and Jordan Pope added 19, which is what good guards do to overmatched teams.

What the Aggies have not done is guard a power conference rotation for 40 minutes, and last season, when they did it every night, they allowed 78.9 points a game. Oklahoma State scoring 104.5 a game, even against soft competition, is a different problem than UL Monroe.

The counterpoint is strong and it starts with Haggerty, the best player in this game, playing at home. Texas A&M forces mistakes, Tyshawn Archie came off the bench for 12 points and 5 steals against UL Monroe, and Oklahoma State has not played a road game yet.

If the Cowboys' ball handling cracks under that pressure in the first ten minutes at Reed Arena, the Aggies can build the kind of lead that makes 7.5 points irrelevant. The total of 177.5 says everyone expects a track meet, and in a track meet the deeper team with points in hand is the side worth holding.

Every pick is published with its line before the game. Odds via consensus sportsbooks at time of writing and move constantly. Must be 21+. If gambling is a problem, call or text 1-800-GAMBLER.