Ohio State vs. Houston Free Pick, Betting Odds - March 24
Gambling911.com has your predictions for the Ohio State vs. Houston game along with the latest odds.
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Ohio State - Ohio State went from barely making the NCAA Tournament to a spot in the second round with a 62-59 upset of sixth-seeded Iowa State in the Midwest Region on Friday night.
Houston - Houston's Corey Davis Jr. produced one of the finest openers of this NCAA Tournament. Davis broke an American Athletic Conference with seven made 3s in an NCAA Tournament game, to go along with 26 points, seven rebounds and six assists without a turnover. The Cougars win by 29 points.
Predictions
Athlon: "The Buckeyes have added to the Big Ten's success in this year's tournament (7-1 so far), and they proved some doubters wrong with the win over Iowa State. While the Wesson brothers are a force to be reckoned with, Houston is a difficult draw for any team. The Cougars' speed, quickness, and efficiency on both ends of the court are hard to contain much less slow down. The Houston will move onto the Sweet 16 but the Wesson brothers will put on one more show in a tightly contested game." Prediction: Houston 74, Ohio State 70
Gambling911.com says: "This four point Houston victory could happen based on early line movement vs. action indicators compared with the Sagarin calculations".
From the Houston Chronicle:
"Why Ohio State will win
"They can slow down the pace and play the physical brand known in the Big Ten. The Buckeyes are clutch at the free-throw line, making 22-of-24 against Iowa State and almost 75 percent for the season.
"Why Houston will win
"Short answer: Corey Davis Jr. The senior guard is averaging 21.1 points over the last 10 games, including 26 (seven 3-pointers) in the opener against Georgia State. The Cougars’ defense is among the nation’s best, holding opponents to just 61.2 points a game."
Action vs. Line Movement
75% of the spread action was on Houston as a -5.5 favorite. This one did open at -5, had moved to -6 and was drifting back down. Watch if this one continues trending towards the -5 Sunday as that could be an indication the books like Ohio State to cover here.
Line
Most books were at Cougars -5.5 Saturday night. Sagarin suggests a line of between -4.5 and -5.
- Dan Shapiro, Gambling911.com
