TCU Horned Frogs vs Houston Cougars Prediction, 3/15/2024 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: TCU Horned Frogs vs Houston Cougars

Date: Friday, March 15, 2024

Location: T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, MO

TV: ESPN+

The TCU Horned Frogs (21-11) are en route to T-Mobile Center on Friday where they will try to beat the Houston Cougars (28-3).

The TCU Horned Frogs stepped onto the hardwood against Oklahoma and notched a win by a score of 77-70 in their last game. TCU walked away from the game with a 47.2% field goal percentage (25 of 53) and made 7 of 18 shots from beyond the arc. At the charity stripe, the Horned Frogs buried 20 of their 26 attempts for a rate of 76.9%. In terms of grabbing rebounds, they compiled 28 with 7 of them being offensive. They also recorded 14 assists for this contest in addition to forcing the opposition into 18 turnovers and getting 11 steals. In terms of the defense, TCU allowed the other team to shoot 47.9% from the floor on 23 out of 48 shooting. Oklahoma totaled 11 assists and had 8 steals for the game. On top of that, Oklahoma pulled down 28 rebounds (6 offensive, 22 defensive), but didn't have a block. Oklahoma ended up shooting 61.5% at the charity stripe by converting 16 of 26 attempts. They knocked down 8 of their 21 attempts from 3-point land. In the matter of personal fouls, the Horned Frogs ended up with 19 while Oklahoma racked up 20 personal fouls.

Emanuel Miller is a guy who came through for this game. He walked away with 26 points on 9 of 13 shooting. He was on the hardwood for 35 minutes played and also pulled down 8 boards. He finished the game shooting 69.2% from the field and earned 3 assists.

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TCU heads into this game with a mark of 21-11 this season. They average 80.3 points per game (40th in Division 1) while going 47.4% from the floor. The Horned Frogs are shooting 36.4% on 3-pointers (215 of 590) and 73.1% from the charity stripe. As a unit, TCU is snagging 36.5 rebounds per game and has accounted for 557 dimes this season, which is 11th in D-1 in terms of passing. They lose possession via turnover 12.8 times per game and as a group they commit 17.7 personal fouls every game.

When they are on the defensive end, the Horned Frogs have forced 15.0 turnovers on a nightly basis and they draw 17.8 personal fouls. They currently rank 307th in the country in giving up assists to the opposition with 460 surrendered so far this year. The Horned Frogs are giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 44.7% (813 of 1,819) and they relinquish 32.3 rebounds per game as a group. They surrender 32.7% on three-point shots while they are 169th in college basketball in opponents PPG (71.6).

The last time they took the court, the Houston Cougars got the win with a final of 76-46 against Kansas. With respect to team rebounding, Houston allowed Kansas to pull down 25 in total (4 offensive). They shot 14.3% from 3-point land by hitting 3 out of 21 and ended up shooting 13 out of 20 at the free throw line (65.0%). The Cougars permitted Kansas to bury 15 of 45 attempts from the field which had them shooting 33.3% for the contest. When all was said and done, the Cougars ended up shooting 28 out of 64 from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 43.8%. Pertaining to three-point attempts, Houston converted 11 of 29 attempts (37.9%). They were able to make 9 of those for a percentage of 81.8%. Kansas committed 14 personal fouls in the game which took the Cougars to the free throw line for a total of 11 tries. They also turned it over 10 times, while getting 11 steals for the matchup. The Cougars corralled 25 defensive rebounds and 10 offensive boards totaling 35 for the matchup.

Jamal Shead pitched in for the Cougars for this contest. He made 5 of 12 for this game giving him a rate of 41.7%, and tallied 6 rebounds. He totaled 13 points in his 37 minutes of playing time and tallied 8 assists for the contest.

Houston has a win-loss record of 28-3 for the season. In terms of offensive execution, the Cougars are hitting on 43.8% from the floor, which ranks them 244th in college basketball. Houston has accumulated 2,300 pts so far this season (74.2 per game) and they snag 38.0 boards per contest. Their rate of assisting teammates is at 13.1 times per contest (180th in college hoops) and they are giving up possession 8.7 times per contest. The Cougars are responsible for committing 17.9 personal fouls every game and they connect on 68.7% from the free throw line.

The Cougars are ranked 1st in the nation in PPG given up with 56.9. They have forced 16.1 TO's every game and have allowed teams to shoot 38.3% from the floor (1st in D-1). The Houston defense gives up 30.2% on shots from distance (190 of 630) and their opponents are converting on 66.3% of their shots from the free throw line. They have surrendered 11.5 dimes and 33.2 rebounds per contest, which is 65th and 89th in college basketball.

Who will win tonight's NCAA basketball game against the spread?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take TCU

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