Houston Cougars 2025 NCAA Tournament Betting
The Houston Cougars have one of the better team histories in college basketball. And head coach Kelvin Sampson has a resume that is the envy of nearly all college basketball coaches. But Houston and Sampson are missing one big item to complete their resumes. Houston has made the national championship game twice in its history but came up short both times. Sampson led three teams to the Final Four but was unable to cut down the nets at the end. On Monday Night, Houston and Sampson can make history in the National Championship Game against the Florida Gators.
NCAA Basketball Betting Lines
Florida Gators -1
Houston Cougars +1
Total: 141
Money Line: Florida -114, Houston -106
2025 Houston Cougars Next Matchup
On Monday, April 7, 2025, the Florida Gators will face the Houston Cougars at the Alamodome in San Antonio, TX. Tipoff Time is 8:50 p.m. ET with television coverage on CBS.
2025 Florida Gators Team Overview
Overall, the Florida Gators are 34-4 straight up, 27-11 against the spread, and 21-16-1 over/under the total. Florida has national metrics of 4th for scoring offense, 53rd for field goal percentage, 91st for 3-point field goal percentage, 197th for free throw percentage, and 3rd for offensive rebounding. While defensively, Florida is 93rd for scoring defense, 14th for field goal percentage permitted, 10th for 3-point field goal percentage allowed, and 141st for defensive rebounding.
Lately, Florida has covered seven of its previous ten games and has gone over the total in nine of its last ten outings. Walter Clayton is first among Florida scorers with 18.5 points per game.
2025 Houston Cougars Team Overview
Overall, the Houston Cougars are 34-4 straight up, 20-16-2 against the spread, and 16-22 over/under the total. Houston has national metrics of 156th for scoring offense, 123rd for field goal percentage, 2nd for 3-point field goal percentage, 110th for free throw percentage, and 123rd for offensive rebounding. While defensively, Houston is 1st for scoring defense, 4th for field goal percentage permitted, 25th for 3-point field goal percentage allowed, and 7th for defensive rebounding.
Lately, Houston has covered five of its previous seven games and has gone over the total in two of its last ten outings. LJ Cryer is first among Houston scorers with 16.0 points per game.
LJ Cryer ignited a 14-point comeback in the final 8:02, J’Wan Roberts made the go-ahead free throws, and Houston stunned Duke 70-67 in a memorable Final Four clash between No. 1 seeds on Saturday in San Antonio.
Cryer shot 6-of-9 from 3-point range and led the Cougars with 26 points, while Roberts had 11 points, 12 rebounds, and five assists. Emanuel Sharp made massive plays down the stretch and finished with 16 points for Houston, which will face Florida in the national championship game on Monday.
Cooper Flagg had 27 points, seven rebounds, four assists, and three blocks for Duke, but was whistled for a foul with 19 seconds left that allowed Houston to move in front after the Blue Devils led most of the game.
Houston outrebounded Duke 42-31 to make up for 37.7 percent shooting from the floor. Duke made just 39.4 percent of its shots after hitting at least 50 percent in each of its first four NCAA Tournament games.
Duke appeared safe when Houston’s Joseph Tugler made contact with the ball when the Blue Devils were attempting an inbound with 1:14 to go. Duke received one technical foul shot and possession.
Kon Knueppel (16 points) made the foul shot for a 67-61 lead, but Houston got a stop on Tugler’s block and Sharp made a major 3-pointer to cut it to 67-64.
Mylik Wilson stole James’ inbound pass, and Houston clawed within one on Tugler’s putback dunk with 25 seconds left. The Cougars then fouled Duke, Tyrese Proctor missed the front end of a 1-and-1, and Roberts drew a foul from Flagg on the rebound.
Roberts’ free throws gave Houston its first lead since 6-5. Flagg’s midrange floater with eight seconds left hit the front of the rim, and Houston got the rebound. Cryer hit two free throws for the final margin.
Latest NCAA Tournament Results
| YEAR |
RESULT |
| 2024 |
Lost Sweet Sixteen vs. (4) Duke 51–54 |
| 2023 |
Lost Sweet Sixteen vs. (5) Miami FL 75–89 |
| 2022 |
Lost Elite Eight vs. (2) Villanova, 44–50 |
| 2021 |
Lost Final Four vs. (1) Baylor, 59–78 |
| 2019 |
Lost Sweet Sixteen vs. (2) Kentucky, 58–62 |
| 2018 |
Lost Second Round vs. (3) Michigan, 63–64 |
| 2010 |
Lost First Round vs. (4) Maryland, 77–89 |
2024-2025 NCAA Basketball Top Teams
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