The 16th-seeded Northern Kentucky Norse (22-12) battle the No. 1 Houston Cougars (31-3) Thursday in the first round of' the NCAA Tournament. Tip from Legacy Arena in Birmingham, Ala., is set for 9:20 p.m. ET. Below, we analyze Tipico Sportsbook’s lines around the Northern Kentucky vs. Houston'odds, and make our expert college basketball picks, predictions and bets.
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Houston comes into this game having lost to the Memphis Tigers 76-65 in the AAC Championship without Marcus Sasser. The star guard is expected to play in the tournament and he averages a team-high 17.1 points per game. The Cougars failed to cover 7 of their last 9 games.
Northern Kentucky beat Cleveland State 63-61 on March 7 to win the Horizon League Tournament, but failed to cover as a 2.5-point favorite. It is 7-1 against the spread (ATS) in its last 8 games. The Norse are led by F Marques Warrick, who has scored at least 20 points in 7 of their last 9 games.