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The No. 12 BYU Cougars suffered their first loss of the season earlier this week, and they will also be without a key contributor the rest of the year. They will get a shot at the Missouri State Bears on the road Saturday afternoon as slight favorites.
BYU lost to Utah Valley in overtime on Wednesday as a double-digit favorite. Gavin Baxter has struggled through injuries throughout his career, and he tore his ACL in the loss. Additionally, big man Richard Harward has been unavailable this season with a medical condition, so the Cougars are battling plenty of adversity early on.
Missouri State will enter with a 4-3 record to this point of the season, but BYU will be the most talented team the Bears have seen this year by a wide margin. Missouri State’s strengths come on the offensive end of the floor, and they are led by Gaige Prim (20 points, 10.6 rebounds per game) and Isiaih Mosley (18.3 points per game).
How to watch BYU VS. Missouri State
When: Saturday, December 4th, 4:00 p.m. ET
Where: JQH Arena, Springfield, Missouri
TV: CBS Sports Network
Where to live stream online: CBS Sports Network, CBS Sports mobile
Live updates and stats: At DraftKings Sportsbook
Odds
Spread: BYU -1.5
Total: 140
The Pick
Over 140
Missouri State isn’t all that great defensively as they enter Saturday’s slate at No. 143 on that end of the floor in KenPom’s adjusted efficiency, but the Bears are pretty darn good on offense where the Bears are rated No. 34. Baxter played double-digit minutes in the six full games he played this season, but BYU should have enough offensive firepower to make up for his loss.
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