In a Second Round NCAA Tournament game, the (1) Houston Cougars will face off with the (9) Auburn Tigers in the Midwest Region. Let’s take a look at the top college basketball betting odds, March Madness expert picks, betting trends and KenPom Rankings, then give our Houston vs Auburn prediction.
Houston vs Auburn Prediction and March Madness Expert Picks
2023 NCAA Tournament
No. 1 Houston Cougars (32-3) vs Auburn (21-12)
Date: Saturday, March 18, 2023
Time: 7:10 P.M. EST
Venue: Legacy Arena – Birmingham, AL
Coverage: TBS
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Houston vs Auburn March Madness Betting Odds
All college basketball betting odds for Houston vs Auburn can be found at BetUS Sportsbook.
Moneyline: HOU: (-245) | AUB: (+203)
Point Spread: HOU: -5 (-110) | AUB: +5 (-110)
Total: 131.5 – OVER: (-110) | UNDER: (-110)
KenPom Rankings | Bracketology
KenPom Rankings are from KenPom.com
Team | AdjEM (Rk) | AdjO (Rk) | AdjD (Rk) | AdjT (Rk) |
Houston | +28.57 (1) | 117.8 (12) | 89.3 (4) | 63.5 (342) |
Auburn | +17.61 (27) | 112.7 (45) | 95.1 (28) | 67.7 (164) |
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Houston vs Auburn College Basketball Betting Trends
- Houston is 18-17 against the spread (ATS) this season.
- Auburn is 16-17 ATS this season.
- The OVER is 16-19 for Houston this season.
- The OVER is 20-13 for Auburn this season.
Houston vs Auburn Prediction | March Madness Expert Picks
In the First Round, Auburn took down Iowa in a high-scoring affair. The only difference though with this game is that Houston’s defense is much better than Iowa’s. Houston is also not going to give Auburn the same amount of opportunities that Iowa did. Look for Houston to slow this game to a snail’s pace, especially with the Tigers close to 50% shooting from the field in that game.
Houston somewhat struggled in their First Round matchup against Northern Kentucky. With star guard Marcus Sasser only playing 14 minutes, and now having his status up in the air again, Houston only managed 51 shot attempts in this game. They prevailed though once again thanks to their patented defense. Unlike the classic Houston team, this team had 14 turnovers, leading to 13 points for Northern Kentucky.
With 131.5 being the total in this game, it seems low enough that the OVER should hit no matter what. Auburn’s defense has not been anything special lately, and even without Sasser, Houston shot 49% from the field.
Our college basketball betting Houston vs Auburn prediction tonight will be OVER 131.5 at BetUS.
For what it’s worth, the ESPN Matchup Predictor gives Houston an 85.7% chance to win.