Illinois Fighting Illini vs Houston Cougars Prediction, 3/26/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Illinois Fighting Illini vs Houston Cougars

Date: Thursday, March 26, 2026

Location: Toyota Center in Houston, TX

TV: TBS

Odds/Point Spread: Houston (-3)

Toyota Center is the location where the Houston Cougars (30-6) will take on the Illinois Fighting Illini (26-8) on Thursday in the Sweet 16. Illinois opens as 3-point dogs. The over/under is 139.

The Illinois Fighting Illini faced VCU and went home with a win by a final score of 76-55 in their last game. Illinois ended the game having earned a 48.3% field goal percentage (28 of 58) and made 9 of their 24 three-point attempts. At the charity stripe, the Fighting Illini converted 11 of their 17 tries for a rate of 64.7%. In terms of rebounding, they earned a total of 40 with 9 of them being on the offensive end. They also distributed 15 dimes for the game in addition to forcing 10 turnovers and getting 5 steals. In terms of defense, Illinois allowed their opponent to shoot 34.8% from the field on 23 out of 66 shooting. VCU totaled 8 assists and had 8 steals in this matchup. Additionally, VCU collected 26 rebounds (12 offensive, 14 defensive), but wasn't able to record a rejection. VCU finished 33.3% at the charity stripe by knocking down 2 of their 6 shots. They also converted 7 of 32 shots from 3-point range. Regarding fouls, the Fighting Illini walked away with 14 and VCU totaled 14 fouls.

Andrej Stojakovic is a guy who was a major contributor for the contest. He finished shooting 58.3% from the floor and earned 1 assist. He was on the hardwood for 26 mins played and totaled 4 rebounds. He scored 21 points on 7 of 12 shooting.

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Illinois steps onto the hardwood with a win-loss mark of 26-8 for the season. They currently have an average of 84.7 points per outing (17th in the country) while connecting on 46.5% from the field. The Fighting Illini are connecting on 35.0% on three-point shots (373 of 1066) and 78.4% from the charity stripe. As a unit, Illinois is pulling in 41.0 boards per game and has tallied 500 dimes so far this year, which is 104th in the nation in terms of passing. They lose possession via turnover 8.8 times per game and as a team they are committing 13.3 personal fouls per contest.

When they are on the defensive end, the Fighting Illini are forcing their opponents into 7.9 turnovers on a nightly basis and they draw 18.7 fouls. They currently rank 214th in college hoops in giving up assists to the opposition with 448 surrendered for the campaign. The Fighting Illini defense is giving up an opponent FG percentage of 40.9% (883 of 2,157) and they relinquish 30.8 boards per game as a team. They are giving up 31.0% from beyond the arc while they are 60th in D-1 in PPG from their opponents (69.4).

The last time they took the court, the Houston Cougars walked away with a victory by a final of 88-57 when they faced Texas A&M. With respect to attacking the glass, Houston allowed Texas A&M to collect 27 in total (8 offensive). They shot 25.0% from 3-point land by going 6 out of 24 and finished the contest at 15 out of 19 from the free throw line (78.9%). The Cougars permitted Texas A&M to convert 18 of their 52 attempts from the floor which had them at 34.6% for this game. When the game finished, the Cougars ended up going 30 for 68 from the floor which gave them a percentage of 44.1%. Regarding shooting from downtown, Houston made 8 of their 31 attempts (25.8%). They were able to bury 20 of the free throw tries for a percentage of 80.0%. Texas A&M had 20 personal fouls for the matchup which took the Cougars to the free throw line for a total of 25 tries. They coughed up the ball 5 times, while getting 4 steals for this contest. The Cougars were able to corral 26 defensive rebounds and 16 offensive boards for a total of 42 for the matchup.

Emanuel Sharp was important for the Cougars in this contest. He earned 18 points in his 25 mins on the hardwood, but went home with no dimes. He buried 5 of 11 in the game giving him a field goal percentage of 45.5%, and accumulated 4 rebounds.

Houston has a record of 30-6 for the year. The Cougars are committing 17.9 personal fouls per game and they shoot 77.2% from the free throw line. Their rate of earning assists is at 14.5 times per contest (131st in the country) and they lose possession by turning the ball over 8.4 times per game. Houston has earned 2,789 pts for the year (77.5 per contest) and they collect 37.1 rebounds per game. As an offensive unit, the Cougars are connecting on 45.1% from the field, which ranks them 183rd in the nation.

The Houston defense gives up 31.4% on shots from 3-point land (245 of 780) and their opponents are knocking down 69.9% of their foul shots. They allow 11.0 assists and 33.3 boards on a nightly basis, which ranks 24th and 99th in Division 1. The Cougars on defense are ranked 2nd in the country in points given up per game with 62.3. They are forcing their opponents into 13.5 turnovers per game and allow teams to shoot 39.5% from the floor (12th in college).

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Houston (-3)

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