Vegas Play of the Day: Oklahoma at Kansas State

By Taylor Bern

Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2014 | 2 a.m.

We’re off the schneid! I’m so excited that the Vegas Play of the Day is no longer winless that I’ve decided to take a victory lap that’s bound to set me back.

Through one week we had multiple bad picks, one example of why you should shop around for the best line and one winner thanks to Kansas’ win at Iowa State on Monday. Let’s see if we can get to two in a row:

Oklahoma plus-5.5 at Kansas State: $440 to win $400

These are two well-coached teams with disparate styles and it has the potential to be very exciting or incredibly boring with little room in between.

I’m betting on it being exciting, which would mean that Oklahoma dictates the tempo. Former UNLV coach Lon Kruger’s Sooners have the 10th-most efficient offense in the country, according to Kenpom.com. They’ve scored at least 95 points five times this season, although one of those was a loss.

On the other side is Bruce Weber’s Kansas State team, which Kenpom has as the 13th-most efficient defense in the country. The Wildcats defend the three-point line better than almost anyone else and fresh off a blowout loss at Kansas they may be in a good position to bounce back. Before that the Wildcats had rattled off 10 consecutive wins.

I’m going with Oklahoma because if the Sooners get the upper hand then it’s possible they’ll just run away with the game. But even if Kansas State controls it most of the way, the game should still be close and Oklahoma has an offense ready-made for a backdoor cover.

Standings: Bern (1-1, $9,870), Brewer (0-1-1, $9,230), Keefer (0-3, $8,975)

Taylor Bern can be reached at 948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Taylor on Twitter at twitter.com/taylorbern.