The No. 4 Duke Blue Devils attempt to end a dubious streak when they meet the top-seeded Houston Cougars in the South Region Sweet 16 of the 2024 NCAA Tournament on Friday. Duke (26-8), which rolled past Vermont and James Madison in its first two March Madness games, has lost six straight meetings with higher-seeded teams in “The Big Dance.” Houston (32-4) is looking to match the single-season program record for victories after defeating Longwood and Texas A&M. The Cougars set the school mark of 33 wins in 2018-19 and tied it last season.
Tipoff from American Airlines Center in Dallas is set for 9:39 p.m. ET. The Cougars are 4.5-point favorites in the latest Houston vs. Duke odds via SportsLine consensus, while the over/under for total points scored is 134.5. Before making any Duke vs. Houston picks, you need to check out the college basketball predictions and betting advice from SportsLine expert Zack Cimini.
A Las Vegas handicapper who’s never afraid to buck conventional wisdom, Cimini entered the Sweet 16 as SportsLine’s most profitable college basketball expert. He’s 83-58-2 on his last 143 college basketball picks, returning $1,880 for $100 players. Anyone following him has seen huge returns.
Now, Cimini has his sights on Duke vs. Houston and just locked in his Sweet 16 predictions. You can visit SportsLine now to see his picks. Here are the college basketball lines and trends for Houston vs. Duke:
- Duke vs. Houston spread: Cougars -4.5
- Duke vs. Houston over/under: 134.5 points
- Duke vs. Houston money line: Cougars -203, Blue Devils +165
- HOU: The Cougars are 6-12 against the spread in their last 18 games as favorites on the road or at neutral sites
- DUKE: The Blue Devils are 20-13-1 ATS this season
- Duke vs. Houston picks: See picks at SportsLine
Why Houston can cover
The Cougars have recorded at least 32 victories in four of their last six seasons and each of the past three, tying them for the third-longest such streak during the NCAA Tournament era. They have amassed 125 wins over their last four campaigns, the most in the nation in that span and most in a four-year stretch in program history. Houston ranks first in the country in points allowed (57.7) and opponents’ field-goal percentage (37.I 8%), and it looks to become the first team to lead Division I in both categories since Princeton in 1976-77.
Emanuel Sharp has been the Cougars’ top scorer during March Madness with 43…
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