Houston Cougars vs. Temple Owls: Prediction, Preview, Picks & Odds - 2/5/2023

by Chuck Sommers

Sunday, Feb 05, 2023
Time: 6 p.m. ET
Venue: Liacouras Center, Philadelphia, PA
Where to watch: ESPN2

Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks


DraftKings: Houston -10.5
FanDuel: Houston -11.5
BetMGM: Houston -11.5
Caesars: Houston -11

Season record
No. 3 Houston: 21-2 (9-1 AAC)
Temple: 14-9 (8-2 AAC)

February is here and the college basketball season is taking full shape. Conference races still to be determined, the top 25 completely in shambles for what seems like every week, and there's bound to be an upset what seems like every single week. But as the season continues to progress with what seems like exciting action every week, you know our champion handicappers continue to put the work in each and every week to not only make money for them, but to ensure you get money in your pocket. All you need to do is look at the last 30 days. Scott Rickenbach has reeled in a net profit of $14,000 with a 24-9-0 run on the college hardwood. Team Del Genio has killed it with a 13-1-0 run at +$11,900. Will Rogers (28-15-0) and Matt Fargo (40-27-0) have also seen five figures over the last 30 days with college basketball. Surely, you want to get on this winning as well. All you need to do is go to bigal.com, check out our Best Bets page and make sure you are following along on the action. March will be here before you know it! Take advantage of our best best plays and find out what our champion handicappers are doing at bigal.com!

Houston - Temple preview, prediction and analysis


Recent form
Houston: won 70-61 at Wichita State
Temple: won 77-70 (OT) at UCF

If you would have told me maybe a month ago that this game that is about to take place between the Houston Cougars and the Temple Owls would decide first place in the American Athletic Conference with a month to go, I probably would have laughed in your face and then walked away, and then turned away at the last minute and laughed all over again.
 
But that is exactly what is taking place here on Sunday. The #3 ranked Houston program that has been at the top of the rankings all year long, we'll be taking on the one team that beat them in conference play this year and kick started this entire run right now where Temple has won four in a row.
 
Since that loss at home to the Owls on January 22nd, Houston has rallied off three straight victories in near convincing fashion while Temple has won two more consecutive games both in over time to put themselves at 14-9 and 8-2 in conference play.
 
This is truly one of the more intriguing games that we're going to get this weekend. There have been a lot of ridiculously good barnburners in college basketball this weekend, but for this game to essentially decide sole possession of first place in the American Athletic Conference is kind of wild if you think about it. This program that is hosting this game has not had a chance to have really a dominant game and more important game in recent program history than this one.
 
Because if you're looking for some sort of story here, it's the fact that Temple we'll get a massive opportunity here to lead a conference that has five teams within 2.5 games of each other with about seven or eight more games to go because of the complexion that is this conference and the overall understanding that the underdog is truly a factor here.
 
Houston, meanwhile, is coming off a near surprising 70-61 victory over the Wichita State Shockers on Thursday. Houston has been one of the more dominant teams all season long and the more they continue to beat down on these opponents you start to believe that they could actually win a national championship this year. But the fact that Houston has for all intents and purposes struggled since that loss to temple, I don't know how to feel about them going into what might be a very hostile environment given the situation.
 
Houston prides itself on a balanced scoring attack even when all five starters are not getting anything going while shooting the ball. And that was the case against Wichita state. Jarace Walker and Marcus Sasser each had 15 points but they combined to go 10 of 27 from the field. Yet their defense still gave them a chance to win.
 
"We are showing signs of maturity, not getting too high or too low,” said Jamal Shead, who chipped in with 13 points. "We are following our leader, Marcus. When he came in and started to do his thing, we rallied behind him.”
 
Prediction
 
This has all of the makings of being one of the more important games from a complexion standpoint in college basketball this season. And if I were to venture a guess at all, the home team is playing with all the house money in the world and the home team knows how to beat this team. I do not envy the Cougars at all in this game and I do not envy the fact that they are laying as high as 11 points in this one. Houston wins, but it will be close. Houston 72, Temple 70

Betting trends


Houston is 57-34 ATS in all games the last 3 seasons.

Houston is 31-15 ATS after winning 4 or 5 in their last 6 games the last 3 seasons.

Temple is 8-1 ATS as an underdog this season.

Temple is 8-2 ATS off an over this season.

Projected starting lineup


Houston:
PG: Jamal Shead
SG: Marcus Sasser
SF: Tramon Mark
PF: J'Wan Roberts
C: Jarace Walker

Temple:
PG: Hysier Miller
SG: Jahlil White
SF: Zach HIcks
PF: Nick Jourdain
C: Kur Jongkuch

Statistical leaders

Houston:
Points: Marcus Sasser -- 16.2
Rebounds: J'Wan Roberts -- 7.0
Assists: Jamal Shead -- 5.3

Temple:
Points: Khalif Battle -- 17.7
Rebounds: Jahlil White -- 5.6
Assists: Hysier Miller -- 3.4

Don't miss our champion handicappers' free picks and expert basketball picks today. And if you enjoyed this Houston - Temple 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.

All photographic images used for editorial content have been licensed from the Associated Press.

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