CBS' Gary Parrish, David Cobb predictions for Memphis Tigers vs. Houston basketball game

Erik Hall, Memphis Commercial Appeal
·3 min read

CBS college basketball reporters David Cobb and Gary Parrish discussed the upcoming weekend of men's basketball games during Friday's "Eye on College Basketball" podcast.

One of the games they discussed in the predictions segment of the podcast was Saturday's Memphis Tigers at Houston Cougars men's basketball game, which is scheduled to start at 2:30 p.m. CT.

Houston, ranked No. 7 in the Ferris Mowers Men's Basketball Coaches Poll powered by USA Today Sports, enters the matchup 20-3 overall and 9-1 in the AAC. The Memphis Tigers come into the game 13-8 overall and 7-4 in the AAC.

Entering Saturday, Memphis leads the all-time series 33-20 vs. Houston.

National experts pick Houston Cougars vs. Memphis Tigers men's basketball game

Memphis Tigers forward Josh Minott passes the ball around Tulane Green Wave guard Jaylen Forbes at FedExForum on Wednesday, Feb. 9, 2022.
Memphis Tigers forward Josh Minott passes the ball around Tulane Green Wave guard Jaylen Forbes at FedExForum on Wednesday, Feb. 9, 2022.

Gary Parrish picked Houston to win and Memphis to cover a 13-point spread.

David Cobb picked Houston to win and Memphis to cover a 13-point spread.

"Memphis — very disappointing — but they've won four straight games, now," Parrish said. "And more important than that, they're mostly healthy. DeAndre Williams is back. Jalen Duren is back. Landers Nolley is back. And they're operating at a different level now. They beat UCF by 28 points over the weekend and then beat Tulane by 11, so they're — I'm not saying they're ever going to be what they were expected to be in the preseason, but if they've been off your radar, they're playing a little better right now largely because they're healthy right now."

Memphis defeated UCF 88-60 on Feb. 5, and Memphis followed that with an 80-69 win vs. Tulane on Wednesday.

Keith Easterwood (left) and 92.9 FM ESPN radio host Gary Parrish telling stories on stage at an event in 2019.
Keith Easterwood (left) and 92.9 FM ESPN radio host Gary Parrish telling stories on stage at an event in 2019.

"Memphis' computer numbers are goofy, because they lost so many games when they didn't have players," Parrish said. "Now, everyone except Emoni Bates, I believe, is back, and you can reasonably argue that they're better without him."

Bates, a 6-foot-9 freshman, last played in Memphis' 71-54 win against East Carolina on Jan. 27.

"I'm going to go Memphis against the spread," Cobb said. "I think they'll cover 13 (points), but I think Houston will win the game."

"I think that's right," Parrish said. "I think Memphis will compete with them."

Parrish then talked about Houston's 85-83 loss at SMU on Wednesday before returning to talk about Memphis.

"Certainly, DeAndre Williams is one of the top two players at Memphis," Parrish said. "He wasn't a heralded high school recruit like Jalen Duren, Emoni Bates. He's not a household name, but he's a really good college basketball player — 25 years old by the way. Memphis is 10-4 with him, just 3-4 without him. I don't know what the (NCAA Tournament selection) committee is going to do with that, but Memphis has been pretty good with him and really bad without him. He's available now."

Here's more Memphis Tigers, Houston Cougars men's basketball news:

Kelvin Sampson is the Houston Cougars men's basketball head coach. Penny Hardaway is the Memphis Tigers men's basketball head coach.

Erik Hall is the lead digital producer for sports with the USA Today Network. You can find him on Twitter @HallErik.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: National experts pick Memphis Tigers vs. Houston Cougars basketball