No. 3 seed Illinois prefers to run but will find the going tough against a Houston squad that is difficult to speed up. Illinois has failed to cover its last two as an underdog, including an 84-70 home loss to Michigan as a +1.5 dog. No. 2 seed Houston catches a break, playing at the Toyota Center in downtown Houston. The Cougars rank No. 2 in the nation in scoring defense, and they're a terrific rebounding team. Houston allows 62.2 points per game and has been even better in the tournament, allowing an average of 52 points. The Cougars also rank No. 13 in the country in assist-to-turnover ratio. Play Houston.
Previous Matchups & Picks
March 26, 2026 10:05pm ET
vs.
Illinois Fighting Illini
#613
Houston Cougars
#614
Lines & Odds
+2.5 (-110)
ATS
-2.5 (-110)
+121
Moneyline
-143
OVER 140.5 (-110)
Total
UNDER 140.5 (-110)
Fighting Illini vs. Cougars Spread Picks
Get Fighting Illini vs. Cougars point spread picks, expert spread analysis, computer model picks, betting consensus data, matchup breakdowns, key betting angles, and the latest odds insights for today's Fighting Illini vs. Cougars game.
Public Consensus
Who was the public on? 64% of the public bets were on Houston Cougars on the -2.5 ATS. And, 55% of the bets were on the game to go OVER the total.
Computer Predictions
My computer prediction for this game was that Houston would win by a score of 71.4 to 68.9 with Houston winning on the moneyline, Illinois winning on the spread and the game going UNDER the total.
Pro Picks
This Pro Pick was released to clients on March 26, 2026 at 10:48AM ET.
CBB
Illinois vs. Houston
March 26, 2026
10:05 PM Eastern
Final Score
1H
2H
F
Illinois Fighting Illini 
22
41
65
Houston Cougars
22
33
55
CBB Pro Pick Results
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Wins
Losses
Units
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March 20, 2022 12:10pm ET
@
Houston Cougars
#825
Illinois Fighting Illini
#826
Lines & Odds
-3.5 (-110)
ATS
+3.5 (-110)
-167
Moneyline
+146
OVER 133.5 (-110)
Total
UNDER 133.5 (-110)
Public Consensus
Who was the public on? 62% of the public bets were on Houston Cougars on the -3.5 ATS. And, 60% of the bets were on the game to go OVER the total.
Computer Predictions
My computer prediction for this game was that Houston would win by a score of 70.8 to 67.2 with Houston winning on the moneyline and on the spread and the game going OVER the total.
Final Score
1H
2H
F
Houston Cougars
30
38
68
Illinois Fighting Illini
26
27
53
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