SDSU vs. Houston Betting Line, Preview

San Diego State takes on Houston with a line of Cougars -4.  SCROLL DOWN FOR MORE

This line is right on the money according to the College Basketball Betting Power Ratings.

Houston, at 26-7, enjoyed an impressive 18-10-1 record covering Against The Spread.  They won and covered in eight of their last ten games, making the Cougars among the hottest teams to close out the regular season playing in this tournament.

San Diego State lost 10 games outright this season but also had one of the more impressive records Against The Spread, going 20-10.  The too finished the season in explosive fashion, winning their last nine games outright and covering the spread in all but one of those.

The Cougars had 100-1 odds of winning the NCAA Men's College Basketball Championship while San Diego State had odds set at 150-1.

This year's Houston team reached its highest ranking in the polls since the 1980s.  The team features a balanced offense and defense, making them especially dangerous though they are a true force on the defensive side of the ball.  Their main problem is with fouling. 

ESPN.com’s Shane McNichol believes “Houston is well-balanced and does enough things well to win in the first round, yet the Cougars can rely on their defense and shooting to help them pull off an upset later as well. If they can advance to the second weekend, this is a team with the energy and the skills to beat any team in its path.”

San Diego State is back in the tournament following a two-year absence.  Their inability to hit three-pointers will likely prevent a win or cover against Houston using the 4-point line.  That's not to take anything away from the Aztecs.  This is a team that has held teams to 40.7 percent from the field and 30.5 percent from 3-point range and would likely advance against a number of other solid teams playing in this week's first round, just not Houston in our opinion.  

FIND LIVE ODDS HERE

- Don Shapiro, Gambling911.com