Houston vs Virginia College Basketball Picks, Odds, Predictions 11/16/2021
Virginia Cavaliers (1-1) vs. Houston Cougars (2-0)
November 16, 2021 8:00 pm EDT
The Line: Houston Cougars -7.5 ; Over/Under: 124
(Get latest betting odds)
The Virginia Cavaliers and the Houston Cougars meet Tuesday in college basketball action from Hofheinz Pavilion. Virginia comes into this one at 1-1 so far this year. The Cavaliers took out Radford in their last game. As for Houston, they’re sitting at 2-0. The Cougars are coming off a win over Rice. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.
Virginia stumbled out of the gate this year and took a surprising upset loss to Navy. The Cavaliers were down 42-35 at the break and scored just 23 points from there in a 66-58 loss. Jayden Gardner posted a double-double for the Cavs with 18 points and 10 rebounds.
In game two, things went much better for Virginia. The Cavaliers outscored Radford 41-21 in the first half and cruised to a 73-52 win. Armaan Franklin led the team in that one, scoring 21 points with three assists and three rebounds.
Over on the Cougars’ side, they got a scare themselves in their first game versus Hofstra. Houston was down by six at halftime and had to force an extra period. The Cougars eventually prevailed 83-75 after OT. Marcus Sasser topped the team on 25 points.
The Cougars’ second game wasn’t nearly as dramatic. Houston had Rice down 44-15 at halftime and cruised to a 79-46 win. Sasser again topped the team with 26 points, five assists and four rebounds. Kyler Edwards added 18 points as well.
The Cougars are 12-5 ATS in their last 17 home games and 1-4 ATS in their last five after an ATS win. Houston is 12-5 ATS in their last 17 as a home favorite.
Meanwhile, the Cavs are 32-15-2 ATS in their last 49 road games and 2-7 ATS in their last nine overall. The over is 4-1 in Virginia’s last five overall as well.
PICK: I’m going to try Houston. This one’s tricky though; both teams have a sketchy outing and a convincing win under their belt so far. In any case, Houston rolled in their last game, shooting 41.8 percent from the floor with 42 rebounds and 15 team assists versus Rice. It was a nice bounce-back effort after the flat opener.
As for Virginia, they shot 42.6 percent with 9-of-19 (47.4 percent) from 3-point range against Radford. The Cavaliers are going to have to get their offense moving to keep up with Houston, though. I like Virginia to hang around for most of the game with the Cougars eventually pulling out a cover. This should be a fun early-season matchup regardless.
