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The Houston Cougars will look to bounce back with a win when they face Louisiana at their Hofheinz Pavilion home court on Wednesday night. No.8 Houston are 28.5-point favorites to defeat the Ragin Cajuns. We tell you the best bets when we name our NCAAB betting picks.
- What: 2024/25 Men’s College Basketball
- Who: Houston Cougars vs. Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin Cajuns
- Where: Hofheinz Pavilion, Houston
- When: Wednesday, November 13th, 2024
- Tip-Off: 8 pm. ET
Houston are 1-1 this season. They started the new college basketball campaign as one of the betting favorites after topping the Big 12 with a 15-3 conference record in the 2023/24 campaign.
Houston went 32-5 overall last season. At home they were 17-0. Their regular-season performance saw Kelvin Sampson’s team start the postseason NCAA Tournament as one of the No.1 seeded teams. They ultimately fell short, losing 54-51 to Duke at the Sweet Sixteen stage.
The Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin Cajuns are 1-1 this season. They finished the 2023/24 regular-season fifth in the Sun Belt conference with a 10-8 record. They went 5-9 on the road and finished with an overall record of 19-14.
In the end of season Sun Belt tournament, Louisiana entered as the No.5 team. They were defeated 89-62 by No.4 Arkansas at the quarter-final stage.
Overall, the season was a disappointment after winning the Sun Belt tournament the previous year under head coach Bob Martin, who also took the Ragin Cajuns to the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Louisiana will be hoping Martin can get the team back up to the level they showed in the 2022/23 season in his 15th season in charge.
Houston vs. LA-Lafayette Match Betting
The Houston Cougars are the clear betting favorite to win their second match of the season at the Hofheinz Pavilion.
There is no money line priced up at the moment. There may not be one given the one-sided nature of the match.
On the spread, Louisiana is receiving a massive 28.5-point start. To win with the spread, the Ragin Cajuns are -110. Houston is -110 to win and cover the spread.
The total line is set at 137.5. Over and under are both -110.
Check out our Houston vs. Louisiana NCAAB betting lines on our college basketball betting table. Our NCAAB odds are from the best college basketball betting sites.
| Houston vs. Louisiana |  |  |  |
| Houston | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Louisiana | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Houston (-28.5) | -110 | -110 | -110 |
| Louisiana (+28.5) | -110 | -110 | -110 |
| Over 137.5 | -110 | -110 | -110 |
| Under 137.5 | -110 | -110 | -110 |
Houston
Houston suffered a major setback in their 74-69 home defeat to Auburn last weekend.
The Cougars seemed in control of the match at the halfway point, leading 33-28. But a second half fightback saw the Tigers win a back-and-forth match by five points, with Johni Broome leading the way with 16 second half points (he scored 20 in total).
Houston did hold a nine-point lead in the second period. So it wasn’t a case of being outplayed. They just kept letting the Tigers back into the match and ultimately paid the price.
Auburn’s 74-69 win over (4) Houston:@AuburnMBB’s highest-ranked regular season non-conference win in program history
Currently the highest-ranked win in college basketball this season pic.twitter.com/PQiyB0uYPP
— The Barn (@TheBarn_Auburn) November 13, 2024
In the Cougars only other match this season they made light work of Jackson State. The Cougars won 97-40 in their opening match of the campaign at the Hofheinz Pavilion.
With the loss to Auburn a non-conference match, there is no change in the betting to win the Big 12 regular-season. The favorites are still the Kansas Jayhawks at +220, with the Cougars the second-favorite at +250. Iowa State is +400, with Arizona at +750, and Baylor at +800.
In the betting to win the NCAA Championship outright, the Cougars are the sixth favorites at +1400.
Louisiana
The Ragin Cajuns have had a mixed start to their season. They started out with a four-point defeat to Kent State at their Cajundome home, losing 70-66, despite the best efforts of Kentrell Garnett who finished with 14 points.
That defeat was followed with an 82-65 win over Texas-Dallas in their second home appearance of the season. The Ragin Cajuns held just a two-point lead at the halfway stage. But a strong second period saw the hosts out score their opponents by 15 points to eventually secure a comfortable victory.
The Ragin Cajuns aren’t being given any chance of winning the National Championship match. In the latest betting they are +100000. To win the Sun Belt Conference in the regular season, Louisiana are joint-fifth favorites at +1200. The favorite to win is Arkansas State at +125.
Houston vs. Louisiana Match Betting Picks and Predictions
A win for Houston isn’t in doubt. So will they cover the spread is the only question to be answered.
Houston defeated Jackson State by 57 points in their opening match of the campaign. There were a total of 137 points scored (97-40).
Averages are a bit hard to judge at this early stage of the season. But for the record, Houston is averaging 83 offensively and 57 defensively. The Ragin Cajuns are 74/67.5. Obviously there is a huge disparity between the teams both schools have played against. So those averages need to be treated with caution at this early stage.
The Cougars are 15/10 against the spread in their last 25 home games. So knowing that they are covering three times out of five would lead us towards backing them to cover against the Ragin Cajuns.
Furthermore, the Cougars are coming off a defeat. They also started the season at No.4 and are already down to No.8. Put simply, the Cougars will want the statement win.
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