Cincinnati Bearcats vs Houston Cougars Prediction, 3/11/2023 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Cincinnati Bearcats vs Houston Cougars

Date: Saturday, March 11, 2023

Location: Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, TX

TV: ESPN2

Odds/Point Spread: Cincinnati (+10)

The Cincinnati Bearcats (20-11) are traveling to Dickies Arena on Saturday where they will attempt to beat the Houston Cougars (29-2). Cincinnati opens as 10-point dogs from oddsmakers. The over/under comes in at 137.

The Cincinnati Bearcats faced SMU and went home with a win by a final score of 97-74 in their last game. In reference to fouls, the Bearcats ended up walking away with 20 while SMU racked up 18 fouls. They buried 3 of their 10 attempts from beyond the arc. SMU finished the game shooting 80.8% from the free throw line by converting 21 of 26 attempts. Additionally, SMU totaled 28 rebounds (11 offensive, 17 defensive), but wasn't able to put a block in the stat sheet. SMU recorded 10 dimes and had 4 steals for the game. In relation to defending, Cincinnati allowed the other team to go 40.3% from the field on 25 of 62 shooting. They also recorded 20 dimes for the matchup in addition to forcing the opposition into 9 turnovers and getting 4 steals. Regarding grabbing boards, they compiled 32 with 10 of them being of the offensive variety. From the charity stripe, the Bearcats converted 16 of 24 tries for a rate of 66.7%. Cincinnati wrapped up the contest having earned a 55.6% FG percentage (35 out of 63) and converted 11 out of their 25 three-point attempts.

David Dejulius is a guy who was a major contributor in this game. He ended up finishing with 30 points on 11 out of 18 shooting. He saw the court for 34 minutes and snagged 2 boards. He finished 61.1% from the floor and earned 6 dimes.

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Cincinnati comes into this game with a record of 20-11 for the campaign. They have an average of 77.9 points per outing (42nd in college hoops) while hitting 45.5% from the field. The Bearcats are connecting on 36.0% on three-point attempts (281 of 780) and 70.2% from the free throw line. As a unit, Cincinnati is pulling in 36.9 rebounds per game and is sitting with 494 assists on the season, which ranks 40th in the country in terms of passing the ball. They are losing possession via turnover 10.8 times per contest and as a unit are committing 15.9 personal fouls every game.

On the defensive end of the court, the Bearcats are forcing 12.2 turnovers per game while drawing 15.5 fouls. They are giving up 32.2% on 3-point attempts while they are 162nd in D-1 in points per game allowed (69.7). The Bearcats defensively are giving up a FG percentage of 42.8% (787 of 1,839) and they concede 34.3 rebounds per game as a unit. They rank 144th in college hoops in giving up assists to their opponents with 392 relinquished so far this year.

The last time they took the hardwood, the Houston Cougars walked away with a victory by a final of 67-65 against Memphis. The Cougars pulled down 19 defensive rebounds and 8 offensive rebounds totaling 27 in the matchup. They turned it over 14 times, while earning 7 steals in the game. Memphis was called for 16 personal fouls for the matchup which got the Cougars to the charity stripe for a total of 12 tries. They were able to make 7 of those for a rate of 58.3%. Concerning 3-point attempts, Houston converted 10 of 28 attempts (35.7%). Overall, the Cougars finished 25 out of 54 from the floor which had them shooting 46.3%. The Cougars allowed Memphis to convert 19 out of their 53 tries from the floor which gave them a percentage of 35.8% in this contest. They wrapped up this game 33.3% from distance by going 6 out of 18 and finished the game at 21 out of 23 at the charity stripe (91.3%). Regarding how they rebounded, Houston allowed Memphis to snag 28 in all (8 on the offensive glass).

Tramon Mark was important for the Cougars for this game. He totaled 16 points in his 35 minutes on the hardwood, but finished this game without an assist. He made 6 of 10 for this contest giving him a rate of 60.0%, and had 8 rebounds.

Houston has a win-loss record of 29-2 so far this season. As an offensive unit, the Cougars are shooting 47.1% from the field, which has them ranked 47th in the nation. Houston has scored 2,357 pts for the year (76.0 per contest) and they grab 38.5 rebounds per contest. They are dishing out assists 15.0 times per game (54th in the nation) and they lose possession via turnover 9.9 times per game. The Cougars are committing 16.3 fouls per contest and they shoot 72.2% from the charity stripe.

The Cougars on the defensive side of the court are 2nd in Division 1 in PPG allowed with 56.5. They are forcing their opponents into 14.5 turnovers on a nightly basis and allow teams to shoot 36.5% from the field (2nd in college basketball). The Houston defense allows 28.0% from downtown (198 of 707) and their opponents are connecting on 70.0% of their free throw shots. They relinquish 10.1 assists and 31.0 rebounds every game, which has them ranked 15th and 27th in those defensive categories.

So what is Tonights Parlay prediction?

Parlay's Pundit's Pick: Take Houston (-10) and under 137 points

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