New Orleans Privateers vs Houston Cougars Prediction, 12/13/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: New Orleans Privateers vs Houston Cougars

Date: Saturday, December 13, 2025

Location: Fertitta Center in Houston, TX

TV: ESPN+

Fertitta Center is the location where the Houston Cougars (8-1) will take on the New Orleans Privateers (3-7) on Saturday.

The New Orleans Privateers played Incarnate Word and earned the victory with a final of 84-83 in their last game. New Orleans wrapped up the contest having earned a 58.3% FG percentage (28 out of 48) and buried 7 of their 14 3-pointers. At the charity stripe, the Privateers buried 21 of their 26 tries for a rate of 80.8%. Regarding rebounding, they earned 27 with 6 of them being of the offensive variety. They also recorded 19 dimes in this matchup while forcing the other team into 11 turnovers and earning 8 steals. In terms of defense, New Orleans allowed 47.5% from the field on 28 out of 59 shooting. Incarnate Word dished out 19 assists and had 9 steals for the contest. Additionally, Incarnate Word grabbed 19 rebounds (6 offensive, 13 defensive), but finished the game with no rejections. Incarnate Word finished shooting 71.4% from the free throw line by burying 15 of 21 attempts. They also knocked down 12 of 27 attempts from beyond the arc. In the matter of personal fouls, the Privateers walked away with 18 and Incarnate Word had 20 personal fouls.

Tavaj Cope is one player who came through for the contest. He was able to score 19 points on 6 of 9 shooting. He was on the hardwood for 35 minutes played and pulled down 5 rebounds. He walked away from this one shooting 66.7% from the field and also earned 2 assists.

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New Orleans will play this game with a win-loss mark of 3-7 for the year. They have an average of 73.4 pts per game (280th in Division 1) while connecting on 42.8% from the field. The Privateers are hitting 35.0% on 3-pointers (79 of 226) and 72.7% from the free throw line. As a team, New Orleans is grabbing 36.2 rebounds per game and has earned 140 assists on the campaign, which has them ranked 194th in the country in terms of passing. They are turning it over 14.9 times per game and as a team they are committing 20.4 personal fouls every game.

Defensively, the Privateers are forcing 9.8 turnovers every game while drawing 19.4 fouls. They currently rank 339th in college hoops in giving up assists to their opponents with 171 conceded so far this year. The Privateers are giving up an opponent FG percentage of 44.2% (276 of 624) and they relinquish 37.1 boards per game as a group. They are giving up 31.4% on 3-pointers and they are 334th in college hoops in opponents points per game (82.2).

The last time they took the hardwood, the Houston Cougars got the victory with a final of 80-38 against Jackson State. In reference to team rebounding, Houston permitted Jackson State to collect 23 in all (5 on the offensive glass). They finished the game shooting 32.1% from distance by going 9 of 28 and ended up shooting 3 out of 5 from the free throw line (60.0%). The Cougars permitted Jackson State to make 13 of 44 attempts from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 29.5% in the matchup. Overall, the Cougars walked away from this one shooting 31 out of 65 from the field which gave them a rate of 47.7%. With regard to three-point shots, Houston converted 11 out of their 33 attempts (33.3%). They were able to bury 7 of those for a rate of 53.8%. Jackson State committed 18 fouls for this contest which got the Cougars to the charity stripe for a total of 13 shots. They also turned it over 11 times, while getting 11 steals for this game. The Cougars were able to pull down 20 defensive boards and 18 offensive boards for a total of 38 in this matchup.

Emanuel Sharp ended up being a factor for the Cougars for the contest. He made 8 of 11 for the game giving him a rate of 72.7%, and had 3 rebounds. He tallied 23 points in his 24 minutes on the hardwood and had 3 assists in this matchup.

Houston has a record of 8-1 this season. The Cougars commit 18.3 fouls per contest and they hit 76.6% from the charity stripe. They are getting an assist 17.0 times per game (62nd in college) and they lose possession via turnover 9.8 times per contest. Houston has accumulated 681 points for the season (75.7 per contest) and they pull down 39.8 rebounds per game. As an offense, the Cougars are hitting on 43.9% from the floor, which is 262nd in Division 1.

The Cougars defensively are ranked 5th in D-1 in PPG surrendered with 60.0. They are forcing their opponents into 14.0 turnovers on a nightly basis and have allowed teams to shoot 37.8% from the field (17th in college hoops). The Houston defense surrenders 25.9% on 3-pointers (50 of 193) and their opposition makes 66.0% of their shots from the free throw line. They have given up 9.6 dimes and 34.8 boards every game, which has them ranked 11th and 192nd in those defensive categories.

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Houston

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