Colorado Buffaloes vs UCLA Bruins Prediction, 1/2/2021 College Basketball Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Colorado Buffaloes vs UCLA Bruins

Date: Saturday, January 2, 2021

Location: Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom in Los Angeles, CA

TV: PAC12

Odds/Point Spread: Colorado (+2.5)

Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom is the venue where and the UCLA Bruins (5-2) will take on the Colorado Buffaloes (6-2) on Saturday. The spread on this game has UCLA as 2.5-point favorites. The total is set at 136.5.

Colorado comes into this matchup with a win-loss record of 6-2 on the season. The Buffaloes are shooting 38.8% on shots from beyond the arc (66 of 170) and 85.4% from the charity stripe. They have an average of 77.4 points per contest (102nd in D-1) while connecting on 46.2% from the field. They cough up possession 11.5 times per contest and as a basketball team are committing 17.0 fouls every game. As a team, Colorado is grabbing 36.3 rebounds per contest and is sitting with 122 dimes so far this season, which ranks 93rd in college hoops in terms of passing the ball. On the defensive end, the Buffaloes are forcing their opponents into 14.4 turnovers every game and they draw 18.3 personal fouls. They concede 31.0% on three-point shots and they rank 32nd in the nation in PPG allowed (61.3). The Buffaloes defense is giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 39.9% (178 of 446) and they relinquish 31.1 rebounds per game as a group. They currently rank 202nd in the nation in allowing assists to the opposition with 100 surrendered so far this year.

The Colorado Buffaloes faced the Arizona Wildcats and took a loss by a score of 88-74 in their last game. Colorado walked away from the game having earned a 43.6% field goal percentage (24 of 55) and knocked down 12 of 26 3-point shots. At the free throw line, the Buffaloes converted 14 of their 17 tries for a rate of 82.4%. When talking about pulling down boards, they compiled 28 with 8 of them being offensive. They also distributed 14 dimes in this matchup in addition to earning 5 steals and 2 rejections. In relation to defense, Colorado allowed 43.6% from the field on 24 out of 55 shooting. Arizona earned 20 dimes and had 4 steals for the matchup. In addition, the Wildcats pulled down 29 boards (8 offensive, 21 defensive) and got 2 blocks. Arizona finished 74.1% when shooting free throws by burying 20 of 27 tries. They converted 8 of 17 tries from long range.

Evan Battey is one player who was a factor in the game. He ended up scoring 18 points on 5 of 8 shooting. He was on the hardwood for 21 mins and also pulled down 2 rebounds. Battey finished the contest at 62.5% from the floor and totaled 2 dimes. Someone else that was a major contributor in this contest for the Buffaloes was Maddox Daniels. He collected 2 rebounds and also had 2 assists. He finished the game shooting 66.7% from the field in the matchup by going 4-of-6 (12 points). When the final whistle blew, Daniels saw the court for 18 min.

UCLA has a win-loss record of 5-2 so far this year. The Bruins commit 17.3 fouls per game and they shoot 70.7% from the free throw line. They are assisting teammates 16.0 times per game (67th in Division 1) and they turn the ball over 10.6 times per contest. UCLA has 541 points on the year (77.3 per game) and they average 37.9 rebounds per game. In terms of offensive execution, the Bruins are hitting on 46.2% from the floor, which is ranked 137th in D-1. The Bruins defensively are ranked 128th in college hoops in points per game surrendered with 67.4. They are forcing 13.0 turnovers on a nightly basis and allow teams to shoot 41.5% from the floor (144th in the country). The UCLA defense allows 28.7% on 3-point shots (50 of 174) and their opponents are making 74.8% of their free throw attempts. They have relinquished 12.3 assists and 31.7 rebounds per contest, which ranks 138th and 60th in Division 1.

When they last stepped on the court, the UCLA Bruins took a defeat with a final score of 77-70 against the Ohio State Buckeyes. The Bruins earned 18 defensive rebounds and 13 offensive boards totaling 31 for the contest. They also rejected 2 tries while earning 3 steals in this contest. The Buckeyes were called for 19 fouls in this contest which got the Bruins to the free throw line for a total of 24 shots. They were able to convert 18 of the free throw attempts for a rate of 75.0%. With regard to shots from downtown, UCLA converted 4 out of 13 attempts (30.8%). When the final whistle blew, the Bruins went 24 for 60 from the field which gave them a percentage of 40.0%. The Bruins allowed the Buckeyes to convert 25 out of 50 tries from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 50.0% for the matchup. They wrapped up this game 36.4% from distance by going 8 out of 22 and ended up shooting 19 out of 26 from the free throw line (73.1%). In the matter of rebounds, UCLA permitted Ohio State to snag 28 in total (8 offensive).

Cody Riley was important for the Bruins in the matchup. He converted 7 out of 9 for the matchup for a field goal percentage of 77.8%, which earned him 15 points. Riley totaled 5 boards in his 21 minutes and had 2 dimes for this game. An additional guy who came through for UCLA was Johnny Juzang. He was able to score 13 points in his 31 minutes played by going 5 of 13 shooting in this matchup. Juzang finished going 38.5% from the floor while contributing 2 assists and 3 boards.

Who will win tonight's college basketball game against the spread?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Colorado (+2.5)

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