It’s time to continue our College Basketball odds series with an Arizona-Houston prediction and pick. Find out how to watch Arizona-Houston.
The Arizona Wildcats have caught a number of breaks at this Big 12 Tournament, but to their credit, they are cashing them in. They got a break when Kansas, their quarterfinal opponent, had to go to overtime in the first round against UCF. That left the Jayhawks a little tired for Thursday’s game. To be sure, Arizona earned that bit of good luck by getting the bye into the quarterfinals. Nevertheless, it really helped that KU played extra basketball late at night on Wednesday, softening up the Jayhawks for the Wildcats.
Then Arizona faced Texas Tech on Friday in the Big 12 Tournament semifinals. Texas Tech was without two core rotational players. The Red Raiders are likely to be a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament when the brackets are revealed on Selection Sunday. Going deep in that tournament matters. The Big 12 Tournament did not matter nearly as much. Arizona had a great situation for that semifinal, and it proceeded to handle the Red Raiders.
Let’s see if Arizona can take one more step and win its first-ever Big 12 Tournament championship.
Here are the Arizona-Houston College Basketball Odds, courtesy of FanDuel
Big 12 Tournament Odds: Arizona-Houston Odds
Arizona: +6.5 (-110)
Moneyline: +220
Houston: -6.5 (-110)
Moneyline: -275
Over: 134.5 (-115)
Under: 134.5 (-105)
How to Watch Arizona vs Houston
Time: 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT
TV: ESPN
*Watch college basketball LIVE with fuboTV (Get Access | Save $30)*
Why Arizona Will Cover The Spread/Win
We mentioned Arizona has been riding a wave of good fortune this week at the Big 12 Tournament. Now, guess what? Arizona gets another piece of good luck in the Big 12 Tournament final. Houston frontcourt star J’Wan Roberts did not play in the semifinals against BYU. One would think he will not play in this final against Arizona, though that information has not been confirmed at the time of publication. This is an ankle injury. One would think Houston will not risk aggravation to the injury, especially since the Cougars were able to beat BYU without Roberts on Friday night.
The line opened at Houston -7.5 but has been bet down to 6.5. You should still be happy to take Arizona plus the 6.5, given that Houston gets so much production and leadership from J’Wan Roberts at both ends of the court. Only if the line drops to 4.5 should you think twice about taking Arizona. A 6.5-point spread is still great for the Wildcats.
Why Houston Will Cover The Spread/Win
You might have seen Houston demolish a hot BYU team in the Big 12 semifinals on Friday. Houston bolted to a 15-0 lead and was in charge of that game from the beginning, even without J’Wan Roberts. Houston is just a machine. Kelvin Sampson, more than most coaches, has figured out how to teach effort and how to get consistent intensity from his players. He is so good at doing that. Houston just gets after it on defense and on the glass, and the Cougars don’t ordinarily let up. That’s why they are so good. Houston won on the road at Arizona earlier this season, going into Tucson and prevailing. If Houston could win outright in Tucson, it can win by at least seven points on a neutral floor in Kansas City.
Final Arizona-Houston Prediction & Pick
Houston deserves so much respect for what it has done without J’Wan Roberts, but Arizona keeps getting injury-based luck, and with the spread at 6.5, we feel solid about taking the Wildcats plus the points.
Final Arizona-Houston Prediction & Pick: Arizona +6.5
The post Arizona vs Houston prediction, odds, pick for Big 12 Tournament final appeared first on ClutchPoints.
