Cougars Look To Keep Streaking vs Bearcats

Cincinnati (15-6, 5-3) bounced back from a loss to Temple with a road win over the East Carolina Pirates on Jan. 30. The Bearcats are fifth in the AAC, a half-game behind the Owls and Green Wave, and percentage points ahead of the Memphis Tigers.

The college basketball lines for this contest have the Cougars as six-point favorites on the road, with the over/under set at 132½ points. If you’d prefer to make a moneyline bet online, Houston is listed at -250, while Cincinnati is +210.

Getting By

The Cougars have won 11 in a row despite losing leading scorer Marcus Sasser 12 games into the season and dealing with multiple injuries to the rest of the rotation. The team isn’t deep, but it’s winning, and that’s what matters to coach Kelvin Sampson.

“Kyler (Edwards) played 40 minutes; Taze (Moore) played 38 (minutes), but that’s not going to change,” Sampson said after Wednesday’s win. “We don’t have any depth. That’s why what we’re doing is not a beauty contest. It’s a great win. Period. Did we shoot well? No. But, this time next week, when you look at our record, it’s going to count as W, and that’s all I care about right now.”

Edwards has stepped into the lead scorer role with Sasser out, averaging 14.2 points and 6.0 rebounds per game. He’s also shooting 37.2% from 3-point range, but he’s hardly the only scorer for Sampson.

Fabian White Jr. tied his career high with 21 points against Tulane, going past the 1,000-point plateau in the process. White averages 11.5 points and 5.6 rebounds per game but also makes an impact on the defensive end, averaging 1.0 steals and 1.3 blocks per game.

Josh Carlton is contributing 12.0 points as well as a team-high 6.5 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game. He’s shooting 61.8% from the floor, though only 56% at the free-throw line.

Moore has also been a glue guy, averaging 8.1 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 1.4 steals per game. Moore has 12 points, five rebounds, and six assists in the win over Tulane.

Needing More

The Bearcats were almost on a two-game losing streak coming into this contest, but David DeJulius’ floater with 3.7 seconds left gave Cincinnati a one-point win over East Carolina last weekend. Cincinnati needs to put together some wins in a hurry if it hopes to move up in the AAC standings and make a case for being included in March Madness.

The Bearcats have a win over Illinois on their resume, but to knock off the Cougars would be a big feather in the team’s cap when the NCAA Tournament Committee is making its decisions. Cincinnati also has a game at Houston scheduled for March 1.

DeJulius will need to come up big again in this one. He’s averaging 13.4 points this season, one of only two double-figure scorers for coach Wes Miller.

Guard Jeremiah Davenport is also scoring 13.4 points per game while also leading the Bearcats with 5.0 rebounds per contest. Neither player shoots particularly well from the field, with both just under 41% shooting.

Defense is going to be in order in this game, with Cincinnati ranking second in the AAC in scoring defense at 62.5 points per game. Problem is, Houston is first in scoring defense at 56.5 points per game and first in scoring offense with 76.8 points per game.

Cougars Roll

Houston is playing well as a team on both ends of the floor, and it’s hard to picture them losing this game against an anemic offense like Cincinnati’s. The Cougars hit the boards and score plenty to push their winning streak to a dozen.

When you’re doing your college basketball betting, take Houston to win and cover on the road.

Pick: Houston Cougars -6