Baylor Bears vs Arizona Wildcats Prediction, Odds and Picks for Tuesday, 01/14/25

Much of Arizona’s struggles relative to expectations in the nonconference portion of its schedule were due to close game variance. In fact, even as they were losing tight games to the likes of Oklahoma, West Virginia and UCLA, the metrics would still tell you that the Wildcats were a top 20 team in the nation and it appears that the numbers were ultimately correct. Arizona has rebounded nicely in conference play, having won 6 straight games dating back to December 18, and the Wildcats are firmly a contender in what is shaping up to be another very strong year for the Big 12. The backcourt duo of Jaden Bradley and Caleb Love seemed to have hit their stride, while Anthony Dell’Orso and KJ Lewis have been excellent in recent games. All of this sets up nicely for Tommy Lloyd’s team to put forth a strong effort on both sides of the ball on Tuesday, especially since the Wildcats are coming off a win over UCF where they appeared to be going through the motions following a long road trip.

On the other side, Baylor enters this game as winners of back-to-back contests. However, this is not an ideal spot for the Bears, having now been out west for nearly a week following a win over Arizona State last Saturday. The Bears are also dealing with a couple of key injuries in their rotation, as both Jalen Celestine and Langston Love are questionable for this game. Both of these players have already missed a couple of games due to these undisclosed injuries, and I’d be surprised if they were back in the lineup for Tuesday’s contest, especially with the opportunity to get back into the swing of things in Waco against lesser competition on the horizon. Baylor’s offense has needed its best players to log big minutes in recent games, including in that overtime win in Tempe, which could come back to bite them in a game against an Arizona team that loves to play with pace (50th in adjusted tempo) and wear down its opponent. Scott Drew’s team is one that I’ll be interested in backing once they get fully healthy, but for now, I can’t do anything but fade the Bears in this spot. Let’s lay the points with the Wildcats.

Baylor vs Arizona prediction: Arizona -5.5 available at time of publishing. Playable to 6.

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