The Wichita State Shockers likely have one more chance to beat a ranked team and that will come this weekend against the No. 25 Houston Cougars. The Shockers, interestingly, have shorter odds to win the national title (+5000) than the Cougars (+8000), who have a better record and higher AP Poll rank than Wichita State.
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Betting Preview for the Wichita State Shockers vs Houston Cougars NCAA College Basketball Game on February 9 2020
Where: Fertitta Center, Houston,
When: Sunday, February 9, 2020, 3:00 PM ET
Line: Wichita State Shockers (Odds) vs. Houston Cougars (Odds) – view all 2020 NCAAB lines
TV Broadcast: ESPN
Betting on the Wichita State Shockers (17-4 Overall / 5-3 Conference)
If the Shockers are going to get inside the Top 25 again, they likely will have to beat Houston in the rematch this coming Sunday. The Shockers are coming off a 54-51 road loss to the Tulsa Golden Hurricane, as Wichita State struggled heavily on offense in that game. The Shockers just could not break down Tulsa’s zone defense, as they repeatedly failed to solve it with outside shooting going 6 of 31 from behind the arc and 20 of 58 from the field overall. Wichita State’s defense did its job, limiting Tulsa to only 37.2 percent shooting from the floor and forcing the Golden Hurricane to turn the ball over 14 times. Wichita State needs its offense to step up against the Cougars. The Shockers lost to Houston at home on Jan. 18, 65-54, when they shot just 30.4 percent. They also need to capitalize on the freebies, a lesson they should have learned after missing 11 of 24 attempts from the foul line in that meeting.
The Shockers are 31st in the nation with just 63.2 points allowed per game.
The Shockers are 6-4 against the spread (ATS) in their last 10 games away from home.
Betting on the Houston Cougars (17-5 Overall / 7-2 Conference)
The Cougars had their five-game unbeaten run snapped by the Cincinnati Bearcats during a 64-62 road loss last Sunday. The Cougars will look to rebound from this Thursday at home with a meeting with the Tulane Green Wave. Houston choked in the Cincinnati game, wasting a 10-point lead at the half by missing 14 of its last 15 shots in the second half. It’s not always Houston’s offense becomes that dry. The Cougars are 23rd nationally in adjusted offensive efficiency with 112.7 points per 100 possessions and third in the American Athletic Conference play in that department with 102.5 points per 100 possessions. As shown in their win over Wichita State last month, the Cougars can also rely on their defense when their scorers struggle. The Cougars are allowing just 63.5 points per game and owns a 44.2 defensive effective field goal percentage.
The Cougars are 2-0 straight-up (SU) in their last two games at home against Wichita State.
Writer’s Prediction
Wichita State wins, 67-66.
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