The Tulsa Golden Hurricane (5-17, 1-10 AAC) will try to break down one of the nation’s top scoring defenses when they are on the road to face the No. 2 Houston Cougars (22-2, 10-1 AAC) on Wednesday.
Tulsa was defeated by the Wichita State Shockers 86-75 at Donald Reynolds Center on Sunday, their fourth consecutive loss. Tim Dalger was a top performer in the losing effort with 24 points and seven rebounds. The Golden Hurricane are 11th in the American Athletic Conference.
Houston won their fourth in a row on Sunday at Liacouras Center, beating the Temple Owls 81-65. Jarace Walker had 23 points to lead the team. The Cougars are first in the American Athletic Conference.
The teams are meeting for the final time this season. Houston will be looking for a season sweep against Tulsa after winning the only prior game 89-50 at Donald Reynolds Center in December 2022, their third straight head-to-head victory.
J’Wan Roberts led the Cougars with 15 points and nine rebounds. Bryant Selebangue had 13 points and nine rebounds in defeat. Sam Griffin is averaging 15.6 points per game to lead the Golden Hurricane in scoring this season.
Meanwhile, Selebangue is grabbing 9.6 rebounds per game, and Anthony Pritchard is dishing 4.0 assists.Marcus Sasser (16.0 ppg) has been the primary provider for the Cougars on offense. Roberts is collecting 6.8 rebounds per game, and Jamal Shead is doling out 5.3 assists.
The Cougars rank as one of the toughest scoring defenses in the country, third-best with 55.6 points per game allowed. In the last 10 games, Tulsa is 1-9 with an average margin of -10.9 (70.6-81.5). For the season, the Golden Hurricane are averaging 68.9 points per game, compared to 76.9 for opponents.
Houston has a 9-1 record over the last 10, scoring 75.6 points per game on average while holding opponents to 63.6 (+12.0 margin). The Cougars are averaging 75.4 ppg for the full season while allowing 55.6.
GOLDEN HURRICANE HOT/COLD
(Last Five | Season Average | Differential)
Points + Rebounds + Assists:
Tim Dalger: 23.0 | 15.1 | +7.9
Keyshawn Embery-Simpson: 3.4 | 8.0 | -4.6
Points per game:
Tim Dalger: 15.8 | 9.2 | +6.6
Rebounds per game:
Tim Dalger: 6.4 | 5.0 | +1.4
Sterling Gaston-Chapman: 1.6 | 3.2 | -1.6
Assists per game:
Sam Griffin: 1.4 | 2.2 | -0.8
COUGARS HOT/COLD
(Last Five | Season Average | Differential)
Points + Rebounds + Assists:
Jarace Walker: 26.2 | 19.1 | +7.1
Ja’Vier Francis: 2.8 | 9.8 | -7.0
Points per game:
Jarace Walker: 17.8 | 11.3 | +6.5
Tramon Mark: 7.2 | 9.7 | -2.5
Assists per game:
Marcus Sasser: 4.2 | 3.3 | +0.9
SportsTips’ College Basketball Pick:
Houston -28.5 (-105)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
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