Texas Longhorns vs Houston Cougars Prediction, 2/17/2024 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Texas Longhorns vs Houston Cougars

Date: Saturday, February 17, 2024

Location: Fertitta Center in Houston, TX

TV: ESPN+

The Houston Cougars (21-3) host the Texas Longhorns (16-8) at Fertitta Center on Saturday.

The Texas Longhorns stepped onto the hardwood against West Virginia and notched a win by a score of 94-58 in their last game. Texas ended the contest with a 51.4% FG percentage (36 of 70) and converted 15 of 32 3-point attempts. From the charity stripe, the Longhorns made 7 of 8 shots for a rate of 87.5%. In regard to pulling down rebounds, they compiled 33 with 7 of them being offensive. They also dished out 28 dimes in the game in addition to forcing 15 turnovers and earning 8 steals. When it comes to defense, Texas allowed 38.2% from the floor on 21 of 55 shooting. West Virginia recorded 6 assists and had 2 steals for this game. Moreover, West Virginia pulled down 33 boards (8 offensive, 25 defensive), but wrapped up the game with no rejections. West Virginia finished the game shooting 61.9% at the charity stripe by burying 13 of their 21 tries. They also buried 3 out of their 13 attempts from beyond the arc. In the matter of fouls, the Longhorns walked away with 20 and West Virginia recorded 10 fouls.

Dylan Disu is a guy who was a contributor in this contest. He was able to score 27 points on 10 out of 16 shooting. He played for 26 minutes and totaled 1 board. He finished shooting 62.5% from the floor and also recorded 3 dimes.

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Texas will take the court with a record of 16-8 on the year. They are turning it over 11.9 times per contest and as a squad they commit 16.6 fouls per game. As a unit, Texas is collecting 35.2 rebounds per game and is sitting with 389 dimes on the campaign, which ranks 46th in college hoops in terms of passing. The Longhorns are hitting 37.9% on three-point attempts (184 of 486) and 74.9% from the charity stripe. They are averaging 76.8 pts per game (96th in the country) while hitting 48.0% from the field.

When they are on the defensive end, the Longhorns are able to force 13.0 turnovers per game while drawing 16.0 fouls. They concede 34.5% on shots from downtown and they are 77th in Division 1 in opponents points per game (67.8). The Longhorns defense is allowing a FG percentage of 42.6% (586 of 1,377) and they concede 33.1 rebounds per game as a team. They are currently ranked 63rd in the country in giving up assists with 277 conceded on the year.

When they last stepped on the court, the Houston Cougars walked away with a victory by a final of 67-62 against Cincinnati. When talking about how they rebounded, Houston allowed Cincinnati to pull down 31 overall (8 offensive). They finished 30.0% from three-point range by going 6 of 20 and ended up going 18 of 25 from the free throw line (72.0%). The Cougars allowed Cincinnati to make 19 of 51 attempts from the field which had them at 37.3% in the game. When the game finished, the Cougars went 27 out of 69 from the field which had them shooting 39.1%. With regard to three-point shots, Houston converted 3 of their 16 attempts (18.8%). They were able to bury 10 of those for a rate of 71.4%. Cincinnati had 13 fouls for the contest which took the Cougars to the free throw line for a total of 14 attempts. They gave up possession of the ball 5 times, while earning 5 steals for this contest. The Cougars were able to snag 23 defensive boards and 16 offensive boards totaling 39 for the matchup.

J'Wan Roberts was important for the Cougars for the game. He accumulated 20 points in his 37 mins on the court, but finished this game without an assist. He knocked down 10 of 15 for the matchup giving him a field goal percentage of 66.7%, and had 8 rebounds.

Houston has a mark of 21-3 for the campaign. The Cougars are committing 18.1 fouls per contest and they shoot 68.1% from the free throw line. They are earning an assist 13.0 times per game (193rd in D-1) and they are giving up possession 8.7 times per contest. Houston has accounted for 1,766 pts so far this year (73.6 per game) and they average 39.7 boards per game. As an offensive team, the Cougars are connecting on 43.3% from the floor, which ranks 260th in the country.

The Houston defense surrenders 28.7% from downtown (142 of 495) and opponents are making 64.4% of their shots from the charity stripe. They have allowed 11.2 dimes and 32.8 boards on a nightly basis, which ranks them 58th and 71st in those defensive categories. The Cougars on the defensive end are ranked 1st in D-1 in points given up per game with 54.7. They have forced 16.1 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 37.1% from the field (1st in the nation).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Houston

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