Tennessee Volunteers vs Houston Cougars Prediction, 3/30/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Tennessee Volunteers vs Houston Cougars

Date: Sunday, March 30, 2025

Location: Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, IN

TV: CBS

Odds/Point Spread: Tennessee (+3)

Lucas Oil Stadium is where the Houston Cougars (33-4) will compete against the Tennessee Volunteers (30-7) on Sunday in the Elite 8. Houston is 3-point favorites from Vegas oddsmakers. The total comes in at 123.

The Tennessee Volunteers played Kentucky and walked away with a win by a score of 78-65 in their last game. When discussing fouls, the Volunteers finished with 14 while Kentucky recorded 17 fouls. They also converted 6 out of their 15 tries from 3-point land. Kentucky walked away from this one shooting 69.2% from the charity stripe by converting 9 of 13 attempts. Additionally, Kentucky grabbed 19 rebounds (4 offensive, 15 defensive), but wasn't able to put a block in the stat sheet. Kentucky doled out 10 assists and had 7 steals in this game. In reference to defense, Tennessee allowed 49.0% from the field on 25 out of 51 shooting. They also doled out 17 assists in this game while forcing the opposition into 11 turnovers and having 8 steals. In terms of getting rebounds, they compiled 31 with 13 of them being offensive. From the free throw line, the Volunteers knocked down 15 of their 20 attempts for a rate of 75.0%. Tennessee walked away from the contest having earned a 50.9% field goal percentage (29 out of 57) and knocked down 5 out of their 19 3-point attempts.

Zakai Zeigler is one player who came through in this contest. He totaled 18 points on 5 of 13 shooting. He was on the court for 35 minutes and snagged 1 rebound. He ended up shooting 38.5% from the floor and totaled 10 assists.

Get all of our NCAA Betting Picks

Tennessee will play this game with a mark of 30-7 this year. They are averaging 74.7 points per outing (149th in D-1) while connecting on 45.6% from the floor. The Volunteers are hitting 34.3% from downtown (308 of 898) and 74.5% from the charity stripe. As a unit, Tennessee is collecting 36.4 boards per game and has 574 assists for the campaign, which has them ranked 25th in the country in terms of passing. They lose possession by turning the ball over 10.5 times per game and as a team they are committing 15.4 fouls per contest.

On the defensive end of the court, the Volunteers are forcing their opponents into 11.6 turnovers on a nightly basis and they draw 17.8 fouls. They are currently ranked 47th in D-1 in giving up assists to the opposition with 377 surrendered this season. The Volunteers defensively are giving up and opponent field goal percentage of 38.5% (806 of 2,095) and they relinquish 31.4 boards per contest as a team. They are surrendering 28.5% on shots from beyond the perimeter and they are 10th in college hoops in points per game from their opponents (62.9).

The last time they took the hardwood, the Houston Cougars walked away with a victory by a final of 62-60 when they faced Purdue. The Cougars were able to collect 18 defensive rebounds and 12 offensive rebounds totaling 30 in this matchup. They turned the ball over 7 times, while getting 4 steals for the game. Purdue was called for 13 fouls for this game which took the Cougars to the charity stripe for 11 attempts. They were able to bury 7 of them for a percentage of 63.6%. When talking about shots from 3-point land, Houston knocked down 9 of 23 attempts (39.1%). When the final whistle blew, the Cougars went 23 for 61 from the floor which had them at 37.7%. The Cougars permitted Purdue to make 21 of 52 attempts from the floor which gave them a percentage of 40.4% in the matchup. They shot 29.6% from beyond the arc by going 8 of 27 and ended up shooting 10 of 12 from the free throw line (83.3%). When it comes to rebounds, Houston permitted Purdue to collect 25 overall (5 on the offensive side).

Milos Uzan ended up being a factor for the Cougars for the matchup. He knocked down 8 out of 17 for the matchup for a field goal rate of 47.1%, and had 3 rebounds. He accumulated 22 points in his 39 minutes on the court and had 6 assists for this game.

Get Your Free 40-Page March Madness Betting Guide here

Houston has a win-loss mark of 33-4 so far this year. The Cougars commit 16.2 personal fouls every game and they connect on 73.9% from the charity stripe. They are dishing out assists 12.2 times per game (281st in the country) and they lose possession by turning the ball over 9.1 times per game. Houston has earned 2,744 pts for the season (74.2 per game) and they collect 36.5 rebounds per game. As an offensive team, the Cougars are shooting 45.5% from the floor, which is ranked 128th in the country.

The Houston defense gives up 30.5% on shots from beyond the perimeter (251 of 822) and opponents are knocking down 71.2% of their shots from the charity stripe. They give up 11.3 dimes and 31.3 total boards per game, which ranks 37th and 24th in those defensive categories. The Cougars defensively are ranked 1st in college in PPG allowed with 58.5. They have forced 13.5 turnovers per game and allow teams to shoot 38.4% from the floor (3rd in college).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Tennessee (+3)

Get $60 worth of FREE premium member picks. No Obligation. No Salesman. No Credit Card. Fast Sign up with Instant Access Click Here