Duke was coming in as a -5 favorite after opening at -4.5 facing Houston in Saturday's Final Four matchup.  Action was 60% or greater on Duke.  We were seeing as much as 68% action on the Duke spread.

Before You Bet

• Most books had moved to -5 but DraftKings was still holding at -4.5. 
• I said a couple of weeks ago on our BBOC podcast that the teams with the best chance of beating Duke are Tennessee and/or Houston. They both slow the game down, limit possessions and hit 3s.  But most importantly, you need to be ultra physical across the board. We saw Clemson have some success with that against the Blue Devils, and Houston has that same edge. - The Action Network
• These teams have met once before, in last year's NCAA tournament, when Duke won 54-51. Although I don't expect to see such a low number of points, I still expect a low-scoring game. I prefer Duke's style of basketball, but we all know that defenses win championships, and the Cougars' rock-solid defense got them this far. If someone can stop Cooper Flagg, it's Houston. - PickDawgs
• Gambling911.com Pick: Houston +5

Betting Preview - Houston vs. Duke

No. 1 Duke and No. 2 Houston play in the NCAA Tournament Final Four.

The Blue Devils' record in ACC play is 22-1, and their record is 13-2 in non-conference games. Duke leads the ACC in rebounding, averaging 35.7 boards. Cooper Flagg leads the Blue Devils with 7.5 rebounds.

The Cougars' record in Big 12 action is 22-1. Houston averages 74.0 points while outscoring opponents by 15.7 points per game.

Duke makes 49.6% of its shots from the field this season, which is 11.4 percentage points higher than Houston has allowed to its opponents (38.2%). Houston averages 8.2 made 3-pointers per game this season, 1.3 more made shots on average than the 6.9 per game Duke allows.

TOP PERFORMERS: Flagg is averaging 18.9 points, 7.5 rebounds and 4.2 assists for the Blue Devils. Kon Knueppel is averaging 17 points and 3.9 assists over the past 10 games.

J'wan Roberts is averaging 10.7 points and 6.3 rebounds for the Cougars. LJ Cryer is averaging 17.5 points over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Blue Devils: 10-0, averaging 86.7 points, 35.9 rebounds, 16.5 assists, 6.0 steals and 5.1 blocks per game while shooting 50.6% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 67.0 points per game.

Cougars: 10-0, averaging 71.6 points, 33.1 rebounds, 10.7 assists, 8.0 steals and 4.2 blocks per game while shooting 43.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 59.6 points.

Houston vs. Duke Player Prop Bets