After a grueling yet thrilling week of play, it all comes down to this. On Saturday at 6:00 p.m. ET, the Houston Cougars and Arizona Wildcats clash in the Big 12 Championship.
With both sides working their way through the Big 12 Tournament bracket, anticipation for tip-off on ESPN is mounting. Entering Saturday’s play, Arizona is favored by 2.5 points at the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, MO.
Below, we’ll break down our Houston vs. Arizona prediction and picks for Saturday’s game. Make your college basketball picks on PrizePicks and PrizePicks Team Picks and earn real money if you’re right, including on game winners, spreads, and totals!
{{nba_offer_banner="/style-system/ui-components-playbook"}}
Houston vs. Arizona Prediction, Spread, Over/Under
Houston is closing in on 30 wins for what would be the fifth consecutive campaign. Head coach Kelvin Sampson’s crew has dominated Big 12 play, posting a 14-4 record in-conference.
Since dropping three straight contests in late February, the Cougars have ripped off five wins without losing.
Under head coach Tommy Lloyd, Arizona is once again thriving. Its 31 wins are the program’s most since the 2021-22 campaign (33), and the Wildcats are a sparkling 16-2 in conference play.
U of A, too, had a small skid in February when it lost to Kansas and Texas Tech back-to-back. After that, all they’ve gone on to do is win eight straight.
Per Arizona’s team site, Houston owns an 8-7 advantage in their series since 1967. On February 21’s matchup between the two powerhouses, though, it was the Wildcats who secured a 73-66 victory behind a 109.6 offensive rating that trumped the Cougars’ 99.1 mark.
Houston vs. Arizona Spread, Over/Under
Houston enters Saturday’s game as 2.5-point underdogs, returning a 2.17x payout on PrizePicks Team Picks if they win outright.
Arizona is a favorite with a 1.66x payout if they win, via PrizePicks Team Picks, where you can earn money with your picks in 35 states.
- Spread: Arizona Wildcats -2.5
- Over/Under: 138.5
- Game Winner Payout: Cougars 2.17x | Wildcats 1.66x
Team Picks data is live at the time of writing and is subject to change.
Houston vs. Arizona Prediction on Spread – 3/14/26
Here are the key stats to know before locking in your Houston vs. Arizona prediction on spread for Saturday, March 14 on PrizePicks.
- On the year, Arizona is an even 14-14-1 against the spread as favorites. Houston is a winless 0-1 ATS when playing the underdog role.
- Offensively, Houston ranks 141st in effective field goal percentage (52.2%) and 117th in scoring (77.2 PPG).
- It’s the other end of the court where the Cougars thrive, as their 62.4 PPG allowed ranks second in the nation.
- Arizona is dominant on both ends. On offense, their 50.3% shooting mark is eighth among all Division I programs.
- Lloyd’s crew is also stingy on defense, surrendering a 44.9 eFG%, good for third nationally.
Houston vs. Arizona Picks for PrizePicks Today: 3/14/26
Here are three top Houston vs. Arizona picks to target for Saturday, March 14 on PrizePicks. Player stat projections via PrizePicks are headlined by G Kingston Flemings, G Brayden Burries, and F Koa Peat.
Houston G Kingston Flemings vs. Arizona Projection: 26.5 Pts + Rebs + Asts
- Flemings averages 25.7 combined points, rebounds, and assists per game. In his last eight outings, that number is up to 26.9.
- In February 21’s loss to Arizona, Flemings went for 29 PRA (17 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists) and notched 17 shots.
- Since the start of February, Flemings has logged 4+ rebounds nine separate times.
- The true freshman guard owns a 26.6% usage rate and 33.4% assist clip, both positive indicators of his involvement on offense.
{{nba_offer_banner="/style-system/ui-components-playbook"}}
Arizona G Brayden Burries vs. Houston Projection: 22.5 Pts + Rebs + Asts
- Burries averages 23.1 PRA this season, including a 26.6 mark in Big 12 play.
- On 11 shots each night, the freshman guard posts a tidy 60.4% true shooting percentage.
- While he went reboundless in Friday’s semifinal game against Iowa State, Burries averaged 5.8 boards in a dozen games beforehand.
- Houston’s defense yields an assist-to-field-goal ratio of 0.542, ranking 228th in the nation.
Arizona F Koa Peat vs. Houston Projection: 16.5 Pts + Rebs
- Peat’s points and rebounds average sits at 18.7 entering Saturday. Since the start of February, however, that number is just 13.9.
- In that same stretch, Peat has attempted just two 3-point shots, missing both of them. He’s also shooting 53.8% from the free throw line.
- Per Bart Torvik, 20 Big 12 players have a usage rate at least at Peat’s 23.9% level. He’s 12th in that group in defensive rebounding rate (12.0%).
- With Houston ranking 351st in adjusted tempo, that could limit Peat’s opportunities to stuff the stat sheet.
Make Houston vs. Arizona Picks on PrizePicks
Houston vs. Arizona Big 12 Championship picks are just one of many ways hoops fans can get in on the daily college basketball action.
You can make your picks on PrizePicks and PrizePicks Team Picks and earn real money. Just pick players, predict More or Less on their projected stats, and cash in if you’re correct. With Team Picks, make predictions on winners, spreads, and over/unders, now available in 35 states.
Stick around with the Playbook for continued college basketball predictions, picks, and news.
