The Houston Cougars play the Arizona Wildcats in the Big 12 Championship in Kansas City, Missouri, on Saturday, March 14. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. ET on ESPN.
Arizona is favored by 1.5 points on the spread with a moneyline of -125. Meanwhile, Houston is the underdog at +1.5 with a moneyline of +104. The over/under sits at 138.5 total points.
Here’s my Houston vs. Arizona prediction and college basketball picks for Saturday, March 14.
Houston Cougars vs Arizona Wildcats Prediction, Picks
My Pick: Houston +2.5
My Houston vs Arizona best bet is on the Cougars against the spread. For all of your college basketball bets, be sure to find the best lines by using our live NCAAB odds page.
Houston vs Arizona Odds, Betting Line, Point Spread
| Houston Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Point Spread | Over/Under | ML |
+1.5 -115 | 138.5 -105o / -115u | +104 |
| Arizona Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Point Spread | Over/Under | ML |
-1.5 -105 | 138.5 -105o / -115u | -125 |
- Houston vs Arizona Point Spread: Arizona -1.5, Houston +1.5
- Houston vs Arizona Total: 138.5 Total Points
- Houston vs Arizona ML: Houston ML +104, Arizona ML -125
Houston vs Arizona NCAAB Preview
It was a tale of two semifinals last night in the Big 12 Tournament.
Arizona and Iowa State put together one of the all-time classic conference tournament games I can ever remember, with the Wildcats winning on a crazy buzzer-beater from Jaden Bradley.
Meanwhile, Houston methodically beat down Kansas in a game that never really felt all that close.
The Cougars' defense suffocated the Jayhawks, holding them to just 47 points in the blowout.
What does that leave us? A showdown in the final between the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds, and two of the best teams in all of America.
In the regular season meeting between these two, Arizona went into the Fertitta Center and walked away with a 73-66 victory in a game it controlled throughout.
A big part of that was the Wildcats forcing 12 Houston turnovers while only turning it over five times themselves.
March is now upon us, and Kelvin Sampson's teams have been a juggernaut in this month for many years now.
I don't think this is the same Houston team we saw in that first meeting, and I expect the Cougars to be much sharper on Saturday.
Kingston Flemings is a bona fide star as a freshman, and Emanuel Sharp makes veteran, winning plays on both ends of the floor.
Just like Iowa State, Houston is one of the few teams in the country that can go blow-for-blow with Zona's size on the backboards.
I also don't expect Anthony Dell'Orso to be able to duplicate the scorching shooting performance he had on Friday against the Cyclones.
Houston vs Arizona Big 12 Championship Pick to Bet
Ultimately, these are two elite teams, and I expect this game to be a classic that comes right down to the wire.
It's hard for me to pick against the Cougars' toughness in these types of games, especially in a rare spot where they're an underdog.
It will likely comes down to who has the ball last, but with Houston getting 2.5 in a coin-flip game, I'll gladly back the defending Big 12 Tournament champs to find a way to cover.
My Pick: Houston +2.5
