The N Kentucky Norse take on the Houston Cougars. Check out our March Madness odds series for our N Kentucky Houston prediction and pick. Find out how to watch N Kentucky Houston.

The Houston Cougars won the AAC regular-season championship. They lost only three games all season. Now they will play for a chance to go to the Final Four in their home city. If they can win four games over the next two weeks, they will fly back to Houston not in defeat, and not with their season over, but with a chance to win a national championship and complete the journey the great Houston teams of the past were not able to finish.

Houston memorably fell one bucket short of the national title in 1983, when Phi Slama Jama lost to North Carolina State in Albuquerque on the Lorenzo Charles putback of a missed jump shot. Houston then climbed back to the national championship game one year later in 1984, only to lose to the Georgetown Hoyas and a brilliant center named Patrick Ewing. Houston is a No. 1 seed at this year's NCAA Tournament. The table is certainly set for the Cougars to do big things, but one injury could get in the way. We'll see if that injury is significant enough to derail their dreams.

Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the N Kentucky-Houston March Madness odds.

March Madness Odds: N Kentucky-Houston Odds

N Kentucky Norse: +18.5 (-110)

Houston Cougars: -18.5 (-110)

Over: 121.5 (-115)

Under: 121.5 (-105)

How To Watch N Kentucky vs. Houston

TV: TNT

Stream: CBSSports.com, March Madness app, fuboTV

Time: 9:20 p.m. ET, 6:20 p.m. PT

*Watch N Kentucky-Houston LIVE with fuboTV (Click for free trial)*

Why N Kentucky Could Cover the Spread

This is a Houston team that is unquestionably talented, capable, and tough. No team gets a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament without being really good. However, Houston star Marcus Sasser, injured in the AAC Tournament semifinals on Saturday against Cincinnati, had to miss the AAC Tournament final on Sunday afternoon against Memphis. Houston lost that game. It is self-evident that not having Sasser on the floor, or merely not having Sasser at 100-percent strength and effectiveness, really sets back this Houston team and forces it to look for offense at positions where it doesn't have quite as much reliability or consistency. Going deeper down the bench invites questions about Houston's capacity to score with the regularity it needs to get to the Final Four. The reason the spread is under 19 points is precisely because of the worries about Sasser. With Sasser, you probably would have seen this spread at 22.5 or 23.5. As is, Houston is hardly a lock to cover large spreads, and in this first game, you might see Houston play a little more cautiously than it would if it had a full-strength version of Sasser on the floor. That could be enough for Northern Kentucky to cover.

Why Houston Could Cover the Spread

The Cougars, precisely because the spread is three to five points lower than it would be with Marcus Sasser fully healthy, can cover this number. Houston lost to Memphis this past Sunday, so every player in the UH huddle is going to come out on that floor and attack this game. Houston will be energized instead of passive, and that will lift the margin over 19 points.

Final N Kentucky-Houston Prediction & Pick

Stay away from this game. The Marcus Sasser factor puts into question what Houston will do. Sit back and watch this game. See how Houston reacts. Then consider a play for UH's next game on Saturday.

Final N Kentucky-Houston Prediction & Pick: N Kentucky +18.5