Wake Forest and Kansas State face off Tuesday with a spot in the round of 64 on the line. These two teams are on different ends of the spectrum, as the Demon Deacons played competitively in the stacked ACC while the Wildcats won ugly in a solid Big 12. For bettors, take a look at the OVER, as Wake Forest has topped the closing total in 15 of its past 17 games.
- Wake Forest is 6-0 ATS in its last 6 games after an ATS loss.
- Wake Forest is 4-1 SU and 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games against the Big 12.
- The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Kansas State's last 7 games.
The conversation about Wake Forest starts with John Collins. The 6’10” sophomore is having an amazing season by averaging 18.9 points and 9.8 rebounds while shooting 62 percent from the floor. His dominance down low makes Collins the team's first option, which has also led to the center drawing eight fouls per 40 minutes of play and he can make teams pay (he shoots 73.6 percent from the free-throw line). All that being said, Wake Forest is simply not good defensively. The Demon Deacons rank in the bottom half in the nation in points allowed, opponent shooting percentage and opponent 3-point percentage.
There’s no need to dance around it; Kansas State isn’t exactly a pretty team to watch. The Wildcats play a grinding style of defense that forces opponents into mistakes and turnovers. That style managed to stifle a quality Baylor team this season, as Kansas State took two games against the Bears. Offensively, Kansas State relies on a scoring-by-committee approach with four players averaging between 11 and 12.5 points per game.
Wake Forest Demon Deacons vs Kansas State Wildcats Matchup
Team Betting Records & Power Rankings
This college basketball season, the Kansas State Wildcats are 20-13 overall and 16-11-2 ATS, while the Wake Forest Demon Deacons are 19-13 and 18-14 ATS. As for the betting totals, Kansas State boasts a 13-16 on the OU, and Wake Forest is 22-9-1.
The power rankings show a disparity between these teams, with the Kansas State Wildcats rated this week at No. 241 and the Wake Forest Demon Deacons sitting at No. 87.
Statistical Matchup
The game also pits Kansas State's No. 174-ranked offense, averaging 71.73 PPG, against a Demon Deacons defense that ranks No. 228 at 77.91 PPG. The Wildcats field goal percentage has averaged 45.85% so far, less than the Demon Deacons marksmen have achieved on the year, 47.21% per game.
Recent Outings Betting Recap
Wake Forest suffered a 99-90 loss against Virginia Tech on Wednesday, getting 21 points from Bryant Crawford in a losing effort at Barclays Center.
Wesley Iwundu scored 13 points in a futile effort to lead the Wildcats to a win (they lost 51-50 to West Virginia at Sprint Center on Friday).
