Jan. 3, 2026, 11:59 a.m. ET

The No. 8 Houston Cougars (12-1) and Cincinnati Bearcats (8-5) meet in a Saturday matinee as they open Big 12 play. The contest at Fifth Third Arena in Cincinnati will tip off at 2 p.m. ET (FOX). Let’s analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s NCAA basketball odds around the Houston vs. Cincinnati odds and make our expert college basketball picks and predictions for the best bets.

Houston went 5-0 in December and has won 6 in a row overall. In their last game on Monday, the Cougars struggled in the first half before eventually putting away Middle Tennessee 69-60, failing to cover as 26.5-point home favorites while the Under 138 cashed. UH sports some of NCAA’s best defensive numbers, holding foes to 60 points or fewer 8 times.

Cincinnati also played its final 2025 contest on Monday. As 14-point home favorites, the Bearcats overwhelmed Lipscomb 89-62 (Under 151.5). Struggling with distance shooting and turnovers thus far in the season, Cincinnati shot 38 percent from 3-point range (11-of-29) and turned the ball over just 8 times against the Bisons. The Bearcats are 8-1 at home.

The Cougars and Bearcats met once last season. UH defeated UC 73-64 in Houston, though the Bearcats covered as 13-point underdogs. Houston has won 10 straight in the series, though Cincinnati covered in 4 of those losses.

– Rankings: USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll

Watch NCAA basketball on Fubo!Houston at Cincinnati odds

Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Saturday at 11:42 a.m. ET.

Moneyline (ML): Houston -300 (bet $300 to win $100) | Cincinnati +240 (bet $100 to win $240)Against the spread (ATS): Houston -6.5 (-115) | Cincinnati +6.5 (-105)Over/Under (O/U): 134.5 (O: -115 | U: -105)Houston at Cincinnati picks and predictionsPrediction

Houston 71, Cincinnati 63

No interest; PASS.

Cincinnati is 2-5 ATS in its last 6 games at home; the Bearcats are also 1-5 ATS across their last 6 home games against Houston. The Cougars are 4-1 ATS over their last 5 games.

UC has been quite inconsistent this season and has not played well against top-flight opponents. When facing BartTorvik top-50s, the Bearcats have gone 0-3 straight up, 1-2 ATS. Cincy is a high-frequency 3-point-shooting team but hit just 31.7% of its shots from there. Better foes have really bottled up that part of the UC attack.

Houston, which is 13-5 ATS over its last 18 games against Cincinnati, is highly efficient at both ends of the floor, most especially in defending the 3-ball. Look for the Cougars to leverage a turnover edge while hitting the offensive glass hard. A solid comp for defense-first Torvik-No. 79 Cincinnati is Torvik-No. 69 Notre Dame. UH topped the Fighting Irish 66-56 on neutral hardwood back on Nov. 26.

In last season’s meeting, the Cougars maintained a consistent 7-to-14-point cushion in the second half. They won by 9 despite an outlier poor 3-point-shooting game (3-of-14).

HOUSTON -6.5 (-115) is the value side.

The last 8 UH-UC games have produced a 6-2 tilt for the Under. The Under is 7-2 across Cincinnati’s last 9 home games.

The pace mix here is slow (UH) vs. fast (UC). But the slow on the Cougar side is slowest 10% in the game. Both sides have highly efficient defenses, and the UNDER 134.5 (-105) is a slight lean.

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