Houston Rolls Into Final Four, but Oddsmakers Make Cougars Underdogs to Duke

The University of Houston closed out its Elite Eight game on Sunday with one of the most dominant showings of the NCAA Tournament so far. The Cougars smothered Tennessee from the opening minutes and rolled to a 69-50 victory.

Duke made a strong case of its own a day earlier, beating Alabama by 20 points. The result is a meeting between the two teams that looked most impressive in the regional finals, set for Saturday night at the Alamodome in San Antonio, with a place in the national title game at stake.

Oddsmakers are siding with the Blue Devils. Duke is a 4.5-point favorite over Houston, the first time in this tournament that the Cougars have entered a game as the underdog. In the other semifinal, set to tip off at 5:09 p.m., Florida is a 2.5-point favorite over Auburn.

Duke is led by three players projected as likely NBA draft lottery picks: Cooper Flagg, Kon Knueppel and Khaman Maluach. The Blue Devils have won their four tournament games by an average of 23.5 points, so their status as the betting favorite to win the championship is not surprising.

According to DraftKings sportsbook, Duke sits at +105 to win the title. In betting terms, a successful $100 wager on the Blue Devils would return $105, making them close to an even-money pick. Florida follows at +290, then Houston at +350 and Auburn at +500.

Houston has not matched Duke's scoring margins during March Madness, but the Cougars arrive in San Antonio having faced more adversity. They survived Purdue on a last-second shot in what amounted to a home game for the Boilermakers, and they held off an experienced Gonzaga squad in the Round of 32.

The matchup also pits strength against strength. By KenPom's advanced statistics, Houston owns the nation's top-ranked defense, while Duke holds the top-ranked offense.