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The Houston Cougars will be trying to give the Memphis Tigers their second-straight loss when they face off Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET in Memphis, TN.
The Cougars (3-3) have not played since Nov. 14 against South Florida, as their last three games have been postponed due to COVID-19. Against USF, quarterback Clayton Tune was dominant on the ground and solid through the air. He completed 14-of-25 passes for 165 yards, three touchdowns, and an interception. Tune also had a game-leading 120 rushing yards with two touchdowns.
As a team, the Cougars ran for 319 yards and three touchdowns. If Houston can get at least half of that total Saturday, it will go a long way to helping them to get a win.
The Tigers (6-3) lost last week to the Tulane Green Wave 35-21, snapping their three-game winning streak. Memphis did not play well on both sides of the ball, beginning under center with quarterback Brady White. White completed 19-of-38 passes for 248 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions. Then to compound their turnover issues, the Tigers only had 45 rushing yards and a touchdown.
Defensively they allowed Tulane quarterback Michael Pratt to pick them apart. He was 21-of-33 for 254 yards and two touchdowns. Unlike White, Pratt got major help from his running game, which had 165 yards and three touchdowns. This season, Memphis’ defense is giving up 146.4 rushing yards and 453.1 total yards per game.
Game Time/TV Channel/Streaming
You can watch Houston vs. Memphis on Saturday, December 12th at 12:00 p.m. ET on ESPN+, a subscription service available as an add-on from ESPN even for non-subscribers.
Point Spread, Totals, Odds, Trends
Point spread: Houston (-5) vs. Memphis
Point Total: O/U 62.5
Money line: Houston (-175) vs. Memphis (+140)
- Since the 2018 season, the Houston Cougars have a record of 7-13 straight up in its last 20 games.
- To no one’s surprise, the point total went over in five of Houston’s last seven games.
- Unlike the Cougars, the Memphis Tigers have not been a bad ML pick as they have a record 15-5 straight up in their last 20 games.
- But when it comes to the spread, the Tigers have a record of 2-9 in their last 11 games.
Betting splits
Houston: (74% of handle, 40% percent of bets)
Memphis: (26% of handle, 60% percent of bets)
The Best Bet
It’s hard to say that the best bet is Houston -5 because we haven’t seen the Cougars play in three weeks. If that’s the case, then logic says to side with Tigers +5, but they haven’t played well as an underdog in their last four games (1-3). Therefore, the best bet is taking the over because both teams’ defenses give up a ton of yards and these offenses can score too.
Pick: Over 62.5
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