Saint Mary’s vs. Houston Prediction
Unranked St. Mary’s and #1 Houston both travel to Fort Worth, TX to face each other at 9:30 PM ET Saturday night. Can the Cougars cover the 10.5-point spread as neutral site favorites?
Saint Mary’s is 6-2 on the year with their best wins coming over North Texas and Vanderbilt. Their only losses came against Washington and New Mexico. The Gaels are 4-4 against the spread this season.
Houston is 7-0 this season with their best wins coming over Oregon and Kent State. They will look to remain unbeaten Saturday. The Cougars are 6-1 against the spread this year.
Game Matchup and Betting Odds
723 Saint Mary’s Gaels (+10.5) vs. 724 Houston Cougars (-10.5); O/U 118
9:30 PM ET, Saturday, December 3, 2022
Dickies Arena, Fort Worth, TX
Saint Mary’s vs. Houston Public Betting Information
Our CBB Public Betting Information page indicates that the public favors the Cougars in this contest. Our public betting data illustrates that 61% of public bets are on Houston -10.5. Do note that these numbers are subject to change and could be different once tipoff rolls around, so be sure to check the link so you’re receiving the most up-to-date public betting data.
Saint Mary’s Game Notes
The leading scorer on St. Mary’s is senior guard Alex Ducas. The 6’7” native of Washington state is averaging 14.5 points per game for the Gaels this season. Ducas leads the team in made three-pointers, and he’s shooting a solid 46.8% from beyond the arc this year. Ducas is also fourth on the squad in rebounding with 4.4 per game.
The Gaels’ best big man is junior center Mitchell Saxen. Saxen is tied with Alex Ducas for the team lead in scoring at 14.5 points per game and he leads the Gaels in rebounding with 8.9 per contest. Saxen has used his size to make an impact on the defensive end as well, as he leads the Gaels with 1.1 blocked shots per game. St. Mary’s will be counting on both Ducas and Saxen for scoring and rebounding against an elite Houston team.
Houston Game Notes
Houston’s leading scorer Marcus Sasser gets all the headlines, but junior guard Tramon Mark deserves some recognition as well. Mark is second on the Cougars in points per game (10.6), third on the team in rebounds per game (4.6), and third in assists per game (1.7). Mark is actually shooting better from the field and from three-point range than Marcus Sasser despite scoring 7.5 fewer points per game than the Cougars’ star guard.
Freshman phenom forward Jarace Walker might lead Houston in rebounding, but junior forward J’Wan Roberts is a key player for the Cougars as well. The 6’7” native of the Virgin Islands is fourth on the club in minutes per game and points per game, and he sports the best shooting percentage (72.1%) on the team. Mark and Roberts will likely be integral to Houston covering this game on Saturday.
Saint Mary’s vs. Houston CBB Betting Trends
Saint Mary’s is 7-1 ATS in their last 8 games following an outright loss.
St. Mary’s is 10-2-1 ATS in their last 13 games following an ATS loss.
Houston is 2-5 ATS in their last 7 games after scoring 100 points or more in their previous game.
Saint Mary’s vs. Houston CBB Prediction:
Houston might be undefeated and the #1 ranked team in the country, but St. Mary’s is no slouch either. The Gaels went 26-8 last year, and have gone 6-2 so far this year. What’s more, St. Mary’s is 29th out of 363 Division I teams in adjusted efficiency margin on Kenpom.com. The key to St. Mary’s game plan is their defense. The Gaels are 20th in defensive efficiency and rank 16th in opponent points per game. They will need to defend well against a Houston team that ranks 7th in the country in offensive efficiency, but I think St. Mary’s has what it takes to slow Houston down and make this a competitive game. I’ll take the Gaels and the points in Fort Worth.
CBB BETTING PREDICTION: ST. MARY’S GAELS +10.5
