Iowa State vs Baylor Prediction 1/7/2026 Today’s College Basketball Picks

The Iowa State Cyclones and the Baylor Bears meet Wednesday in college basketball action from Foster Pavilion in Waco. Here’s an Iowa State vs Baylor prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Iowa State vs Baylor pick. We will examine the recent form and player performances for both teams, as well as the recent betting trends and streaks pertaining to this matchup. As we conclude, we will tie it all together with a summary that produces a sensible pick for a favorable betting outcome in this game.

Iowa State Cyclones Betting Preview

The Cyclones are on a great run so far. Through their first 14 games, Iowa State has dispatched Fairleigh Dickinson, Grambling, Mississippi State, Stonehill, St. John’s, Creighton, Syracuse, Alcorn State, Purdue, Iowa, Eastern Illinois, Long Beach State, Houston Christian and West Virginia in succession for a perfect record on the season.

In their latest outing back on Friday versus West Virginia, Iowa State opened the game with a 41-28 advantage in the first half. The Cyclones finished off with a 39-31 run from there and took another win 80-59. Milan Momcilovic led the team on 26 points with three boards and Blake Buchanan had 14 points with six rebounds. Joshua Jefferson tripled up with 10 boards, 10 assists and 10 points in the winning effort for Iowa State as well.

Baylor Bears Betting Preview

Over on the Baylor side, they won their first four games of the season before taking their first loss versus St. John’s on November 25. The Bears have since gone 6-2 with losses to Memphis and TCU among wins over San Diego State, Sac State, Norfolk State, Alcorn State, Southern and Arlington Baptist. That gives Baylor a 10-3 overall run through their first 13 games so far.

In the TCU matchup back on Saturday the Bears were in the locker room looking at a 29-23 deficit. Baylor kept the pace 40-40 from there and couldn’t gain any ground in a 69-63 road loss. Topping the team in scoring was Cameron Carr with 17 points and three baords. Dan Skillings added 13 points with four rebounds and Tounde Yessoufou had 10 points with five rebounds.

Iowa State Cyclones @ Baylor Bears Betting Trends: January 7, 2026

Why the Baylor Bears will win

• The home team has won each of Baylor’s last seven games.
• Iowa State has lost nine of its last 11 January road games as a top-15 AP-ranked team against a non-AP-ranked team.
• Iowa State has lost the first half in each of its last five January road games as a top-10 AP-ranked team against a non-AP-ranked team.

Why the Iowa State Cyclones will win

• Iowa State has won each of its last 12 games against non-AP-ranked opponents.
• Baylor has lost each of its last seven games against Top 10 AP-ranked opponents.
• Baylor has lost the first half in six of its last seven games against Top 10 AP-ranked opponents.

Iowa State vs Baylor Prediction

I’m staying with Iowa State. The Cyclones are looking great these days and coming off another solid win over West Virginia. In that one Iowa State shot a cool 52.7 percent from the field and 52 percent (13-of-25) from outside along with a 31-22 rebounding edge and 26 team assists. The free throw shooting (9-of-15 for 60 percent) was just about the only minor issue to complain of. The Cyclones have scored great during this 14-game win streak. They’ve got at least 78 points in all but one game (66 in a four-point win over Iowa).

As for Baylor, they couldn’t quite keep pace with a good TCU team in their last matchup. The Bears ended up surrendering just 38.3 percent shooting, but only shot 37.3 percent themselves while getting out-rebounded 39-28 alongside 11 turnovers. Baylor had scored 97 or more points in four straight games (all wins) prior to that, but I don’t think they’ll score too well in this one.

Andrew Jett's Pick: Iowa State Cyclones -5.5