The college basketball season goes on with plenty of interesting matchups over the weekend, so I bring you the best betting picks and tips for the non-conference clash between the South Carolina Gamecocks and Houston Cougars on Saturday, December 5, with the tip-off at 6:00 PM ET.
These two schools will square off against each other for the seventh time in their history after splitting their previous six encounters. Last season, the Cougars easily outlasted the Gamecocks 76-56 as 2.5-point road favorites, and they will certainly open as favorites on DraftKings in this one.
The Gamecocks head to Fertitta Center after some neutral-site action
The South Carolina Gamecocks are 1-1 on the season following a couple of games at the neutral court. They played in the Hall of Fame Classic at T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, suffering a 78-62 defeat to the Liberty Flames and beating the Tulsa Golden Hurricane 69-58.
Guards A.J. Lawson and Jermaine Couisnard are leading the way for South Carolina this season. Lawson is averaging 14.5 points, 2.0 boards, and 1.5 steals per game, while Couisnard is adding 15.0 points and 2.5 assists per contest.
The Gamecocks are tallying 104.2 points per 100 possessions (79th in the country), allowing 92.2 in a return (54th). They finished the previous season as No. 66 in the NCAA NET Rankings, going 18-13 overall and 10-8 in the conference play.
The Cougars aim for their fourth straight win
The Houston Cougars improved to 3-0 on the season following a nice 64-53 victory over the Texas Tech Red Raiders at the neutral site in Fort Worth, Texas. They dominated the Raiders for all 40 minutes, leading by as many as 20 points and easily upsetting the odds as 3-point underdogs.
Before they outlasted Texas Tech, the Cougars recorded a couple of home wins over Lamar 89-45 and Boise State 68-58. Sophomore guard Marcus Sasser leads the way for Houston with 17.3 points on 50.0% shooting from downtown per game, while junior guard Quentin Grimes is tallying 16.0 points and 7.3 rebounds per contest.
The Cougars are reigning AAC co-champions after going 13-5 in the conference play last season, while they were 23-8 overall. Houston finished the regular season as the No. 22 in the AP Top 25 Poll and No. 20 in the NCAA NET Rankings.
Trends:
South Carolina:
- 3-7 ATS in the last ten games played in December when listed as underdogs
Houston:
- 8-4 ATS in the last 12 home games
[metabet_core_odds_compare query=”ncaab/houston_cougars” size=”300×250″ site_id=”atsio” css=”float:right; margin-left:10px”]The Winner Prediction
The Gamecocks will be a tough rival to beat this season, considering the amount of talent on their roster. However, I think the Cougars shouldn’t have any problems beating South Carolina on the home court.
This Houston team plays some really tough defense. The Cougars look sharp even though it’s early in the season, so I’m backing them to win and cover. South Carolina’s frontcourt lacks depth, and I think the Gamecocks will struggle to compete physically with Houston.
Pick: Take Houston Cougars and the points
The Total:
The under has hit in 16 of the Cougars’ last 19 games overall including seven of the previous eight. Houston loves to play at a slow pace, and the Cougars are recording only 69.5 possessions per 40 minutes this term (318th in the country).
On the other side, the Gamecocks prefer a completely different approach, averaging 74.5 possessions per 40 minutes (37th). The over is 7-1 in their previous eight contests overall.
The Cougars’ last six home games went in the under. Houston limited its opponents below 60 points in that span, so I’m betting on the under.
Pick: Go under