College Basketball Preview: Houston Cougars vs. TCU
The TCU Horned Frogs (8-5) aim to upset the 14th-ranked Houston Cougars (10-3) on Monday, January 6 at 9:00 PM ET at the Fertitta Center in Houston, Texas. The Cougars are heavily favored with a point spread at -18.5 (-115) at BetOnline.
TCU Horned Frogs Betting Preview
The Horned Frogs have gone 3-2 over their last five games and need to create more consistency. Their latest battle was a 63-62 win over the Kansas State Wildcats, with Noah Reynolds scoring the go-ahead bucket late to win.
Reynolds finished with 18 points on 54 percent shooting from the field. His go-ahead basket helped cap a 7-0 run for the Horned Frogs and finish strong after an intense back and forth matchup.
Both teams shot about 39 percent from the field, while the Horned Frogs made 40 percent of their threes and held the Wildcats to 21.4 percent from deep. This made a big difference in shot selection, as the Wildcats should have won this game but could not connect from deep as much.
The Horned Frogs are getting 69.7 points per game and making 42.0 percent of their shots. On defense they are holding teams to 66.3 points per matchup, offering a slim margin of victory. This is not a favorable margin coming into this matchup.
Houston Cougars Betting Preview
The Cougars have won their last six games, with all of them by double-digit margins. Their latest victory was an 86-55 blowout over the BYU Cougars, showing excitement on both ends of the floor to get the job done.
They had commanding performances in both halves, which often leads to winning by a large margin. Emmanuel Sharp led in scoring with 18 points on 56 percent shooting. Terrance Arceneaux was right behind Sharp with 15 points off the bench.
The offense had their way in this one, as they nearly shot 50 percent from the field and 47.1 percent from three. They allowed BYU to make 37.5 percent of their shots and 33.3 from three, which showed a great defensive effort from the Cougars.
The Cougars are putting up 77.2 points per game and are connecting on 45.6 percent of their shots. Defensively they have held opponents to 54.6 points per game, which shows a favorable margin of error between these two averages.
Odds, Series Trends, and Free Pick
BetOnline showcases the TCU Horned Frogs vs. Houston Cougars betting odds, favoring the Cougars by 18.5 points. Looking at market predictions, the Cougars have a 93.0 percent chance of winning outright.
The Cougars gave a great opportunity to cover the spread if their defense continues to hold up. The Horned Frogs are not an explosive team on offense, which should bode well for the Cougars.
Final Pick: Houston Cougars -18.5 (-115)
