Houston Cougars (23-2) vs. SMU Mustangs (9-17)
February 16, 2023 7:00 pm EDT
The Line: SMU Mustangs +15.5 / Houston Cougars -15.5; Over/Under: 135
(Get latest betting odds)
The Houston Cougars and the SMU Mustangs meet Thursday in college basketball action from SMU Moody Coliseum. Houston is currently 23-2 overall this year. The Cougars beat Tulsa in their last game. As for SMU, they’re 9-17 on the season following a loss to Wichita State on Sunday. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.
Houston Cougars
Houston has been a pretty great team all year. The Cougars won nine straight to open the year, then fell to Alabama. Houston’s only other loss came to Temple on January 22; since then they’ve beaten UCF, Cincinnati, Wichita State, Temple and Tulsa in succession.
In the Tulsa matchup last Wednesday, the Cougars jumped out to a 46-18 halftime lead. Houston hit a 34-24 edge in the second and won it 80-42. Marcus Sasser was the leading scorer on 25 points and three rebounds in the victory.
SMU Mustangs
Over on the SMU side, they managed to win just six of their first 18 games this year. The Mustangs are 3-5 in their last eight outings with losses to Wichita State, memphis, Tulane, East Carolina and Wichita State again during that time.
In the Wichita State rematch on Sunday, the Mustangs scored 39 points in the first half, 36 in the second and 14 across two overtime periods for a 91-89 loss. Zhuric Phelps posted 26 points and Samuell Williamson doubled on 19 points and 10 rebounds.
ANDREW’S FREE PICK
I’ll probably stay with Houston in this one. It’ll be a thick line pretty much everywhere though, so I’m also probably not touching it. Houston has scored 70 or more points in each of their last five games, which helps dull the memory of the one-point loss to Temple last month. The last time these teams met up was back on January 5 in an 87-53 blowout win for the Cougars at Hofheinz Pavilion. SMU is just 2-3 in their last five home games, but they’ve generally been competitive in those matchups. Houston shouldn’t have too many issues bagging a big win here; the only question will be the margin of victory.
