by Chuck Sommers
Sunday, Jan 22, 2023
Time: 3 p.m. ET
Venue: Fertitta Center, Houston, TX
Where to watch: ESPN
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Houston -20
FanDuel: Houston -19.5
BetMGM: Houston -19.5
Caesars: Houston -19.5
Season record
Temple: 11-9 (5-2 AAC)
No. 1 Houston: 18-1 (6-0 AAC)
We’re nearing the halfway mark of the college basketball season and it’s been quite the ride so far. Will Rogers is going hard in the last 30 days with a 16-10-1 run, while Kyle Hunter has also had a strong run of form as of late at 28-24-0 (+$1,700). If they’ve been killing it as much as they were in the first half, what does the second half have in store? The only way you’re going to find out is by staying locked on bigal.com and following what our champion handicappers are up to heading into the second half. Trust us, you want to know.
Temple - Houston preview, prediction and analysis
Recent form
Temple: won 73-58 vs. East Carolina
Houston: won 80-60 at Tulane
The top-ranked Houston Cougars will look for their 10th consecutive victory and continue their pace to become the top overall seed in the NCAA tournament later this year when they host the Temple Owls on Sunday.
The top-ranked Houston Cougars will look for their 10th consecutive victory and continue their pace to become the top overall seed in the NCAA tournament later this year when they host the Temple Owls on Sunday.
I would say normally you shouldn't worry about this game but considering they are the top team in the country, usually, it always ends up being a good time when you're trying to play the spread. And in this case, Houston is opening up as 20.5 point favorites against the Owls with the total set at 130. If you want to be ballsy about this, Houston is listed at -5000 on the money line. So take that how you will.
Houston is coming off an 80-60 victory over the Tulane Green Wave for the cover 1/3 in four tries for Houston. At this rate when you have a top-ranked team that can dominate in any facet of the game, you always just observe the spread to see how good they truly are. And Houston is just that.
Marcus Sasser led the way with 23 points and four assists on 8 of 13 shooting, while making seven of the team's 12 3-pointers. J’wan Roberts Had 15 points while Jamal Shead had 14 to go along with seven assists.
“Coach was telling me to do what I do best for the team,” said Sasser, who averages a team-leading 16.6 points per game and was coming off a 31-point night in his previous game against South Florida. “I felt like, first half I was being passive. ... I just put my mind on being aggressive and trying to put the ball in the hole. I really just got rolling.”
Houston just has so much balance on both offense and defense too make any team pay. When you have Sasser shooting the way that he has been and when you have him scoring the way that he has, it makes life is so much difficult on the opponents that there really doesn't come off as any hope whatsoever.
And that's why this game against Temple is going to be very interesting because clearly, temple isn't good enough to win outright and anyone who thinks that they will win at plus 1700 on the money line you have seriously been misinformed. Temple has won five of its last seven and is coming off a 15-point victory over East Carolina on Wednesday when the owls were nine-point favorites.
Damien Dunn finished with 22 points while going 16 of 18 from the free throw line, and Khalif Battle had 20 points on 7 of 14 shooting.
The biggest difference here is that Temple has just two players that can carry the scoring load while Houston just has a ridiculous amount of talent up and down the lineup and that is what is going to dictate this game.
Prediction
The favorite has covered in for the last five meetings and if that trend is to continue, this is going to be a bloodbath for the number one team in the country. While I don't think it will be that bad, good luck trying to see temple score against the top ranked scoring defense in the country. Houston 85, Temple 50
Betting trends
Temple is 6-1 ATS this season as an underdog, 21-13 ATS in the last 3 seasons.
Temple is 14-4 ATS in January games the last 3 seasons.
Houston is 53-30 ATS as a favorite the last 3 seasons.
Houston is 27-13 ATS after 2 straight conference games the last 3 seasons.
Temple is 6-1 ATS this season as an underdog, 21-13 ATS in the last 3 seasons.
Temple is 14-4 ATS in January games the last 3 seasons.
Houston is 53-30 ATS as a favorite the last 3 seasons.
Houston is 27-13 ATS after 2 straight conference games the last 3 seasons.
Projected starting lineup
Temple:
PG: Hysier Miller
SG: Jahlil White
SF: Zach HIcks
PF: Nick Jourdain
C: Kur Jongkuch
Houston:
PG: Jamal Shead
SG: Marcus Sasser
SF: Tramon Mark
PF: J'Wan Roberts
C: Jarace Walker
Statistical leaders
Temple:
Points: Khalif Battle -- 17.6
Rebounds: Jamille Reynolds -- 6.3
Assists: Hysier Miller -- 3.6
Houston:
Points: Marcus Sasser -- 16.9
Rebounds: J'Wan Roberts -- 7.1
Assists: Jamal Shead -- 5.2
Don't miss our champion handicappers' free picks and expert basketball picks today. And if you enjoyed this Temple - Houston prediction, be sure to drop by every day for our daily college basketball projections and previews.
Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
