:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/72055415/usa_today_20112063.0.jpg "College basketball picks: West Virginia-Kansas prediction, odds, spread for Big 12 Second Round on Thursday")
The second round of the Big 12 conference tournament will get underway on Thursday, March 9. The No. 8 West Virginia Mountaineers won their first-round matchup against No. 9 Texas Tech and will now face the No. 1 seed Kansas Jayhawks in the quarterfinals. Tipoff from the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri is set for 3 p.m. ET, with the game airing on ESPN.
Let's take a look at the odds and lines on DraftKings Sportsbook and make some picks.
West Virginia vs. Kansas odds in Big 12 Tournament
Spread: Kansas -4.5
Over/Under: 149.5
Moneyline: Kansas -190, West Virginia +160
West Virginia (19-13, 7-11 Big 12) won their final two games of the regular season, including a big win over then-No. 11 Kansas State in the season finale. They picked up the 78-62 win over Texas Tech in the first round thanks to a 20-point, six-rebound game from G Kedrian Johnson.
Kansas (25-6, 13-5 Big 12) will take the court without Bill Self as their head coach. He is recovering from an illness, and assistant coach Norm Roberts will serve as the head coach for this game. The Jayhawks lost the regular season finale to then-No. 9 Texas but had won their last seven games before that.
The Pick: Kansas -4.5
Kansas took both games in the regular season, but they were close. The Jayhawks won 76-62 in the first matchup and then 76-74 in the second. Forward Jalen Wilson has been dominant this season, averaging 19.7 points and 8.4 rebounds. If the Mountaineers can figure out how to slow him down, they will have to deal with G Kevin McCullar Jr., who averaged 11.1 points and 7.3 rebounds a game. Kansas should cover the 4.5-point spread while advancing to the semifinals.