Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs. Houston Cougars Prediction, Odds and Tips

As the week of celebration progresses, the nightcap game in Las Vegas features a game between the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Houston Cougars. Houston had a tough battle with Alabama on Tuesday and ultimately lost the game by 5 points. The Irish went to overtime before losing to Rutgers by one point. The teams will play each other again on Thursday, but it will be a group game rather than a tournament, so it is not yet known who they will face. It’s a benchmark game for both teams. The question for Notre Dame is whether they can compete with the top teams in the country. For Houston, the question is whether they are truly one of the top teams in the country. I expect Houston to answer the bell on Wednesday night, and while the number is big, I’ll take Houston at -17.

On the one hand, I don’t think the Irish are particularly good. They have only beaten weaker teams and even dropped one of them (Elon). While they held out against a decent Rutgers team, they managed 14 3s, which I doubt Houston will allow. The pattern so far for the Cougars has been that they’ve lost to almost the top 10 teams and everyone else has gained. Their defense, while still good, doesn’t seem to be what it has been in recent years, and their offense is still finding its identity. It’s entirely possible that they win by a narrow margin tonight, but I’m assuming they’ll be looking to make a comeback here. I also think the late night overtime game took a lot out of Notre Dame. I’m going to cautiously support the Cougars here.

Notre Dame vs Houston Prediction: Houston -17 (-110) available at time of publication. Playable under this number.