The Tulsa Golden Hurricane (13-6) will attempt to extend a five-game winning streak when they take on the Houston Cougars (13-6) at Hofheinz Pavilion. The game gets underway at 8:00 pm ET on Wednesday, Jan. 27 and will air on ESW and ES3.
The Cougars lost to South Florida 71-62 on Saturday. Danrad Knowles put together a strong game for the Cougars, contributing 15 points and seven rebounds. The Golden Hurricane, meanwhile, are coming off a 75-60 win over UCF on Sunday. Brandon Swannegan stood out for Tulsa, recording 17 points, eight rebounds, and one steal.
Over the last five games, James Woodard has been on a tear for the Golden Hurricane. During that stretch, he has averaged 20.2 points, 7.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.0 steal, 1.0 block, and 3.8 three-pointers.
The odds are even for this game and the Over/Under (O/U) is set at 140 points. The Cougars look to build on their records of 13-6 Straight Up (SU) and 7-7 Against The Spread (ATS). Houston has averaged 70.3 points per game over the last 10 games, lower than its season average of 77.5. Teams have a tough time keeping Houston off of the offensive glass. They rank 13th in Division I in offensive rebounds. Turning to the defensive side, teams really have to fight for three-pointers against the Cougars, who have allowed only 5.0 three-pointers to opponents per game.
On the other side, the Golden Hurricane head into the game with records of 10-7-1 ATS and 13-6 SU. The Tulsa defense as a whole has been firing on all cylinders so far, ranking 48th in Division I with only 68.4 points allowed per road game. Tulsa has not committed many turnovers, averaging only 10.8 per game.
This is the first meeting of the season for Houston and Tulsa. The last time they played, Tulsa came out on top, moving its SU record against Houston to 8-2 in their most recent head-to-head meetings. Additionally, Tulsa leads the matchup ATS with a record of 6-4. When it comes to field goals, rebounds, or three-pointers, neither team was able to hold the advantage in all three of these categories over their past five meetings against one another.
Predictions: SU Winner – Hou, ATS Winner – Hou, O/U – Over
Notes
Houston is 17-7 SU in its last 24 games.
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Houston’s last 6 games.
Houston is 12-3 SU in its last 15 games at home.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Houston’s last 6 games when playing Tulsa.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Houston’s last 6 games when playing at home against Tulsa.
Houston averages 77.5 points per game (ranked 90th). Tulsa, on the other hand, allows 67.8 points per game (ranked 102nd).
The Houston Cougars rank 28th for their offensive rating of 114.8. The Tulsa Golden Hurricane have a defensive rating of 98.7 (ranked 94th).
Tulsa has an average field goal percentage of 44.2%. Houston is a losing 1-4 when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.
The Houston Cougars rank higher based on their field goal percentage (104th) than their effective field goal percentage (134th). The Tulsa Golden Hurricane rank higher based on their effective field goal percentage (154th) than their field goal percentage (164th).
Houston ranks 97th in the nation with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.19, while Tulsa ranks 54th with an A/TO of 1.30.
Houston is one of the best teams in the country when it comes to offensive rebounds, ranking 13th. Tulsa ranks just 243rd in defensive rebounds.
On average, Tulsa forces a turnover rate of 22.0%. When Houston turns over the ball at a similar or higher rate, the team has a winning 2-1 record.
