Prior to Kelvin Sampson's arrival at the University of Houston, the Cougars had only made one NCAA Tournament appearance in 22 seasons with five head coaches since Pat Foster's last season in 1993. Over Sampson's last five seasons, Houston has finished ranked in the final AP Top 25 Rankings each year and made four March Madness appearances. Sampson and the No. 5 seed Cougars face a stiff challenge in their first round matchup this season, as they take on an explosive No. 12 seed UAB that is determined to put an end to the Cougars' bid to return to the Final Four on Friday night.
The South region matchup is set to start at 9:20 p.m. ET from PPG Arena in Pittsburgh, PA. The Cougars are 6-1 in neutral-site games this season, and are 8.5-point favorites. The over-under is listed at 137.5 points in the latest Houston vs. UAB odds on Caesars Sportsbook. Before making any Houston vs. UAB picks, be sure to check out the college basketball predictions and betting advice from SportsLine's proven computer model.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every Division I college basketball game 10,000 times. Over the past five-plus years, the proprietary computer model has generated an impressive profit of almost $1,500 for $100 players on its top-rated college basketball picks against the spread. Anyone who has followed it has seen huge returns.
Now, the model has set its sights on Houston vs. UAB in the NCAA Tournament 2022. You can head to SportsLine to see its picks. Here are several college basketball odds for UAB vs. Houston:
- Houston vs. UAB spread: Houston -8.5
- Houston vs. UAB over-under: 137.5 points
- Houston vs. UAB money line: HOU -430; UAB +330
- HOU: The Cougars are 8-2 against the spread as a favorite in last 10 games
- UAB: Blazers games have gone OVER the point total in each of last five games
What Houston can cover
Houston comes into the 2022 NCAA Tournament on a high after exercising its biggest demon from this season with a win over Memphis in the American Athletic Conference Championship Game. The Tigers took two regular season wins from the Cougars, who maintained their status as a top-25 program all season long. After finishing the regular season by playing some of his best basketball of the year, forward Josh Carlton got better with every game in the AAC tourney, and capped things off with an 18-point performance against the Tigers.
Houston and UAB each finished the season as two of the top rebounding teams in the country, but the Cougars hold a slight edge, at 39.2 rebounds per game compared to UAB's 38.4. Against Tulane in Houston's AAC semifinals win on March 12, the Cougars out-rebounded the Green Wave 40-19, led by J'Wan Roberts, who had 13 off the bench in the 86-66 win. Carlton finished the season as the top rebounder for Houston in conference play, with 6.4 per game, and was the top offensive rebounder in the league, with 113 for the year.
Why UAB can cover
One of the players that has stepped up in a big way at the end of the season for the Blazers is senior guard Quan Jackson. He had a bit of a quiet night in UAB's Conference-USA championship win against Louisiana Tech, but has otherwise been on a tear over his last five games. During that stretch, he has averaged 14.4 points and 8.6 rebounds, and has given the Blazers the type of backcourt grittiness that is essential to make an unlikely March Madness run.
The Blazers turned the ball over at a relatively high rate this season, at 11.5 per game, but they have been ultra-disruptive on defense. The Blazers have forced opponents into 16.1 giveaways per contest, and that can be just what is needed to knock a confident team like Houston off track. The Cougars turned the ball over an average of just 9.3 times during the AAC tournament, and just seven times in their championship win against Memphis, so every possession the Blazers can spoil will be crucial.
How to make Houston vs. UAB picks
The model is leaning over on the total and it's also generated a point-spread pick that is hitting in well over 60 percent of simulations. You can only see the pick at SportsLine.
Who wins Houston vs. UAB? And which side of the spread hits well over 60 percent of the time? Visit SportsLine right now to see which side of the spread you need to jump on, all from the computer model that has crushed its college basketball picks, and find out.
