Baylor vs. West Virginia college basketball pick, spread, odds: James Akinjo, leading Bears in scoring and assists, questionable for Big 12 matchup

On its first two-game losing streak in a few years, former No. 1 and defending national champion Baylor visits West Virginia in Big 12 action with an unusual tip time of 5 p.m. ET because of ESPN, and the Bears could be without their leading scorer and top assist man in James Akinjo as well as another key contributor in Jeremy Sochan. Baylor is still a 6.5-point favorite at Caesars Sportsbook even though WVU is unbeaten at home. Click here for model picks. 

Baylor fell from No. 1 to No. 5 in the new AP Top 25 because of home losses last week to Texas Tech and Oklahoma State – no previous AP No. 1 team had lost two home games in the same week. Baylor had been the first program to start consecutive seasons 15-0 since Syracuse in 2010-11 and 2011-12.

The Bears hadn't lost back-to-back games at home since the end of the 2015-16 season and hadn't lost consecutive games overall since the last three regular-season games of the 2018-19 season and the Big 12 tournament opener.

Akinjo, a senior transfer from Arizona averaging 13.9 points and 5.7 assists, did play both games last week but suffered an undisclosed injury Saturday vs. Oklahoma State and is listed as questionable. He was first-team All-Pac-12 last year with the Wildcats and those 5.7 assists lead the Big 12. He's third in steals at 2.1 per game.

Sochan, a freshman from England, didn't play either game last week due to an ankle injury. He averages 7.9 points, 5.9 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game. The Bears return to Morgantown for the first time since clinching the first Big 12 title program history with a 94-89 overtime win on March 2. Baylor is just 2-4 in its past six in Morgantown, however.

West Virginia comes off a blowout loss Saturday at Kansas, but Coach Bob Huggins' team is simply a different animal at home. KU outscored West Virginia 52-28 after intermission and held the Mountaineers to just 27 percent shooting for the game. Leading scorer Taz Sherman was 1-of-9 from the floor for a season-low five points.

Huggins has 55 wins over ranked teams at WVU, including in Morgantown over No. 15 UConn on Dec. 8, 56-53.

NCAAB free pick: This writer is on the Under 138.5 points and will take WVU +6.5 if Akinjo and Sochan are out. 

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