Check out our entire college basketball season preview!
The college basketball season is less than three weeks away, and here at FTN Fantasy we have you covered for what promises to be another thrilling year of upsets and incredible finishes. I will be taking you around the country with a betting preview of the major conferences. I recap the betting trends from last season, list projected starters, preview the season, identify a key player, and reveal how I’m backing or fading each team.
Let’s start with the best conference in college basketball, the Big 12. Last season, the conference added four new teams in Houston, BYU, Cincinnati, and UCF. This year, the conference expanded to 16 teams, with Arizona State, Utah, Colorado and Arizona bolstering an already-elite conference. The Big 12 says farewell to Texas and Oklahoma, who are now in the SEC.
Let’s take a look at our betting preview for the Houston Cougars.
2024-2025 College Basketball Season Preview: Houston Cougars
Conference: Big 12
Head Coach: Kelvin Sampson (11th season)
2022-2023 Record: 32-5 (15-3)
ATS: 17-18-2
O/U: 16-21
Projected Starters: GMilos Uzan; GLJ Cryer; G Emanuel Sharp; F Ja’Vier Francis; F J’Wan Roberts
It’s been a heck of an 11-year run for Houston head coach Kelvin Sampson. He has built a powerhouse team based on defensive intensity and relentless rebounding. The Cougars have won 27 or more games in six of the last seven seasons and won the Big 12 regular-season title by two games in their first year in the conference. Houston has a solid nucleus returning with LJ Cryer (15.5 PPG), Emanuel Sharp (12.6 PPG) and J’Wan Roberts (9.5 PPG, 6.8 RPG) and Ja’Vier Francis (6.0 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 1.6 BPG).
Key Player: Milos Uzan
The loss of Jamal Shead to the NBA cannot be overstated, and Sampson turns to Oklahoma transfer Milos Uzan (9 PPG, 1.2 SPG) to fill the void. Uzan and Cryer will share the backcourt duties, and Houston hopes Uzan can continue his durability (64 games played last two seasons) with the Cougars. Uzan can struggle from the free-throw line, and only shot 29.6 percent from 3P range last season. Can he return to the 41% from his freshman season, while maintaining his strong on-ball defensive pressure? The Cougars hope (and need) him to do so.
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