Pirates vs. Cougars Prediction
The 17th-ranked Houston Cougars are big favorites at home tonight versus the East Carolina Pirates. Can Houston cover the big spread?
Game Snapshot
815 East Carolina Pirates at 816 Houston Cougars
Wednesday, January 23, 2019
Fertitta Center at 8PM ET
TV: ESPN3
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Public Betting Information
According to oddsmakers at BetNow.eu, the Cougars are an 18.5-point favorite on the spread line. The total sits at 138 points. As of Wednesday morning, 52 percent of public bets are coming in on visiting East Carolina. Check out our College Basketball Public Betting Page for up-to-date info.
Pirates drop third in a row
East Carolina lost 85-74 at home Wednesday night against Temple to fall to 8-9 overall and 1-4 in conference play. The Pirates trailed 37-23 at halftime and could not recover. East Carolina shot 27-of-60 from the field, 6-of-20 from 3-point range and 14-of-22 at the free throw line. Jayden Gardner paced the Pirates with 27 points on 8-of-17 shooting including 1-of-3 from 3-point range plus 10-of-12 from the free throw line. He also contributed eight rebounds, four assists and two blocked shots. K.J. Davis had 15 points, two rebounds and two blocks. Seth LeDay accounted for 12 points, 10 rebounds, four steals, two assists and two blocks. Isaac Fleming added 11 points, four boards and three assists.
Cougars take down host Bulls
Houston secured a 69-60 victory Saturday night at South Florida to move to 18-1 overall and 5-1 in the AAC. Breaon Brady paced the Cougars with 13 points on 6-of-9 shooting plus 1-of-2 at the free throw line. He also had nine rebounds, four blocked shots and two steals. Armoni Brooks had 11 points and three boards. Nate Hinton added 10 points, five rebounds and three steals off the bench. Houston led 35-25 at halftime en route to the win. The Cougars shot 19-of-47 from the floor, 3-of-13 from 3-point range and 28-of-35 at the free throw line.
College Basketball Betting Trends
East Carolina
The Pirates are 4-1 ATS in their last five games following a straight up loss. East Carolina is 3-7 ATS in its last 10 games versus the AAC.
Prediction:
East Carolina is a brutal offensive team, which is partially masked by its up-tempo style which just leads to the opposition scoring a lot of points. Houston should be able to score with ease, while its defense is the strength of its team so the Pirates should be frustrated on that end of the floor. The spread is big, but I’m taking Houston to get the lopsided win at home.
NCAA DAILY PREDICTION: HOUSTON COUGARS -18.5