The Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders and the Houston Cougars meet Saturday in college basketball action from Hofheinz Pavilion. The Islanders opened up their season with a blowout win over SW Adventist on Tuesday. As for Houston, they’re 1-0 as well following a blowout victory of their own versus LA-Monroe. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.

Texas A&M-CC Islanders

Texas A&M-Corpus Christi had another successful season in 2022-23, going 24-11 overall with a 14-4 record in the Southland Conference. The Islanders finished in first place among the standings with that mark, and also took the conference tournament championship. Texas A&M-CC eventually was bounced in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament by Alabama. 

The Islanders had a pretty routine warmup opener versus Southwestern Adventist on Tuesday. Texas A&M-CC scored 56 points in the first half and another 55 from there in a 111-46 blowout win. Jordan Roberts led the scoring on 16 points and Owen Dease added 13 points with eight rebounds and three assists. 

Houston Cougars 

Over on the Houston side, they had a pretty good run last year as well. The Cougars finished 33-4 overall with a nice 17-1 record in the AAC for a first-place finish in the standings. Houston lost to Memphis in the conference tournament championship game, but got a couple of wins in the national tournament prior to a Sweet Sixteen exit at the hands of Miami-FL. 

Matched up against LA-Monroe in their opener, Houston dominated from the opening tip. The Cougars gave up just 14 points in the first half and 17 in the second during an 84-31 win. Top scorer Emanuel Sharp had 20 points in 21 minutes. Damian Dunn also posted double-figures with 18 points and three boards. 

ANDREW’S FREE PICK 

I’ll probably just stick with Houston here. It’s too thick of a line to mess with, though. The Cougars played a great all-round game in their opener versus a severely overmatched LA-Monroe team. The defensive effort was notable, as Houston held the Warhawks to just 28.2 percent from the field. The Cougars owned a 46-30 rebounding advantage and shot 42.6 percent from the floor themselves. If there’s a knock here it’s probably the free-throw shooting of 72.4 percent (21-of-29). 

As for Texas A&M-CC, they’re coming off a nice effort in a routine win over SW Adventist. The Islanders shot 56.1 percent from the field with a 52-21 rebounding edge. Needless to say however, this matchup will mark a significant increase in competition. I don’t think Texas A&M-CC will hang around for too long.