The 16th-seeded SIU Edwardsville Cougars will battle the top-seeded Houston Cougars in a Midwest Regional first-round matchup on Thursday afternoon. SIUE defeated Southeast Missouri State 69-48 to win the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament, while Houston downed Arizona 72-64 to win the Big 12 Tournament. SIU Edwardsville (22-11), who is making its first NCAA Tournament appearance, finished second in the OVC with a 13-7 record. Houston (30-4), which is making its 26th tournament appearance, has reached the Sweet 16 in each of the last five tournaments. Houston forward J'Wan Roberts (ankle) is expected to be available after he missed the conference tournament.
Tipoff from Intrust Bank Arena in Wichita, Kan., is set for 2 p.m. ET. This will be the first meeting between the teams. Houston is a 28.5-point favorite in the latest SIU Edwardsville vs. Houston odds from the SportsLine Consensus, while the over/under for total points scored is 126.5. Before making any Houston vs. SIU Edwardsville picks, be sure to check out the college basketball predictions from the SportsLine Projection Model.
The model simulates every Division 1 college basketball game 10,000 times. It enters the 2025 NCAA Tournament on a 228-166 roll (+2025) on all top-rated college basketball picks dating back to 2023. This model has also produced brackets that have beaten over 91% of CBS Sports entries in four of the last six tournaments and nailed 24 first-round upsets by double-digit seeds. Anyone following could have seen huge returns.
Now, the model has set its sights on SIU Edwardsville vs. Houston and just locked in its March Madness predictions. You can visit SportsLine now to see the model's picks. Here are the college basketball odds and lines for Houston vs. SIU Edwardsville:
- Houston vs. SIU Edwardsville spread: Houston -28.5
- Houston vs. SIU Edwardsville over/under: 126.5 points
- SIUE: Has hit the money line in 19 of the last 28 games (+7.65 units)
- HOU: Has hit the game total under in 21 of the last 37 games (+4.55 units)
- Houston vs. SIU Edwardsville picks: See picks at SportsLine
Why Houston can cover
Senior guard L.J. Cryer powers the Houston attack. He leads the team in scoring with 15.2 points per game and leads the Big 12 in 3-point makes with 100. He played his first three seasons at Baylor before transferring to Houston in 2023-24. Cryer has scored 15-plus points in each of his last five NCAA Tournament games.
Also leading the way for Houston is junior guard Emanuel Sharp. In 31 games, including 30 starts, he is averaging 12.6 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.4 steals in 26.9 minutes. In the Big 12 championship game, he poured in 17 points and added three rebounds. In a 74-54 win over BYU in the Big 12 semifinal matchup, he had 26 points and four rebounds. See which team to pick here.
Why SIU Edwardsville can cover
SIUE is led by Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year Ray'Sean Taylor. The senior guard ranks first in the conference with 19.3 points per game, the best scoring average in a season by an SIUE player since it joined Division I in 2008-09. He is the school's all-time leading scorer with 1,952 points, which includes both the Division I and II levels. Taylor has scored 20 or more points in three of the past four games, including a 30-point, five-rebound and two-assist performance in an 83-68 loss to Southeast Missouri on Feb. 27.
Also helping lead SIUE is junior guard Brian Taylor II. He has reached double-digit scoring in 21 games, including a season-high 23 points twice, the last coming in an 87-80 double-overtime win over Tennessee State on Jan. 16. He had 10 points and seven rebounds in the OVC title game win. In 33 games, all starts, he is averaging 12 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 31.4 minutes. See which team to pick here.
How to make SIU Edwardsville vs. Houston picks
SportsLine's model is leaning Over on the total, projecting 138 combined points. It also says one side of the spread is the better value. You can only get the model's picks at SportsLine.
So who wins Houston vs. SIU Edwardsville, and which side of the spread is the better value? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the SIU Edwardsville vs. Houston spread to jump on, all from the advanced model that has returned more than $2,000 on its top-ranked college basketball picks, and find out.
