UC Santa Barbara Gauchos vs Creighton Bluejays Prediction, 3/20/2021 College Basketball Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: UC Santa Barbara Gauchos vs Creighton Bluejays

Date: Saturday, March 20, 2021

Location: Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, IN

TV: TRUTV

Odds/Point Spread: UC Santa Barbara (+8)

The UC Santa Barbara Gauchos (22-4) go to Lucas Oil Stadium on Saturday where they'll meet the Creighton Bluejays (20-8) in the NCAA Tournament. The odds on this matchup have Creighton as 8-point favorites. The over/under has been set at 140.5.

UC Santa Barbara steps onto the hardwood with a win-loss record of 22-4 for the campaign. They currently have an average of 76.5 points per game (60th in D-1) while shooting 48.5% from the field. The Gauchos are hitting 35.1% on shots from beyond the arc (176 of 501) and 75.0% from the charity stripe. As a team, UC Santa Barbara is pulling in 35.2 boards per game and has accounted for 423 dimes so far this season, which has them ranked 24th in college hoops in terms of passing. They are turning it over 11.0 times per contest and as a unit they commit 15.9 personal fouls every game. On defense, the Gauchos are forcing their opponents into 14.0 turnovers every game and they draw 17.9 fouls. They currently rank 116th in college basketball in allowing assists to the opposition with 270 relinquished on the season. The Gauchos defense is giving up a shooting percentage of 42.0% (597 of 1,422) and they surrender 29.7 rebounds per contest as a basketball team. They concede 33.3% on shots from beyond the arc and they rank 20th in Division 1 in PPG allowed (62.8).

The UC Santa Barbara Gauchos played the UC Irvine Anteaters and walked away with a win by a score of 79-63 in their last contest. UC Santa Barbara wrapped up the contest with a 50.0% FG percentage (29 out of 58) and knocked down 8 of their 21 shots from downtown. At the free throw line, the Gauchos converted 13 of their 19 tries for a percentage of 68.4%. With respect to grabbing boards, they compiled 32 with 9 of them being offensive. They also recorded 12 assists for this contest as well as forcing the other team into 10 turnovers and getting 8 steals. Pertaining to defense, UC Santa Barbara allowed the other team to shoot 44.4% from the floor on 24 of 54 shooting. UC Irvine earned 5 dimes and had 3 steals for this game. Additionally, UC Irvine grabbed 27 rebounds (6 offensive, 21 defensive) and had 4 blocked shots. UC Irvine went 85.7% at the charity stripe by making 12 of their 14 tries. They knocked down 3 of 12 shots from 3-point range.

Jaquori McLaughlin is a player who was a factor for the matchup. He finished with 22 points on 7 out of 13 shooting. He saw the court for 39 minutes played and pulled down 1 rebound. McLaughlin finished the game at 53.8% from the field and totaled 3 dimes. One more player that was a determining factor in the game for the Gauchos was Miles Norris. He pulled down 3 rebounds in his 30 min played on the night. He finished the game at 57.1% from the field for the contest by shooting 8-of-14 (19 points). When the final whistle blew, Norris tallied 2 assists.

Creighton has a mark of 20-8 so far this year. As an offensive unit, the Bluejays are shooting 47.6% from the field, which is 39th in college hoops. Creighton has accounted for 2,155 points on the year (77.0 per contest) and they grab 36.1 rebounds per game. Their rate of dishing out assists is at 15.9 times per game (34th in college hoops) and they are losing possession via turnover 11.1 times per contest. The Bluejays commit 15.5 personal fouls every game and they connect on 64.2% from the free throw line. The Bluejays on the defensive side of the court are 113th in the nation in PPG surrendered with 68.3. They have relinquished 12.7 assists and 36.5 boards per contest, which has them ranked 160th and 252nd in the country. The Creighton defense allows 32.1% on three-point shots (214 of 667) and their opponents are making 70.6% of their free throw shots. They have forced 12.5 turnovers per game and have let teams shoot 40.6% from the floor (39th in Division 1).

When they last stepped on the court, the Creighton Bluejays took a defeat with a final score of 73-48 against the Georgetown Hoyas. The Bluejays were able to corral 21 defensive rebounds and 7 offensive rebounds for a total of 28 in the matchup. They also turned it over 11 times, while earning 6 steals for this contest. The Hoyas were called for 11 fouls for the game which took the Bluejays to the free throw line for 12 attempts. They were able to convert 5 of the free throw attempts for a rate of 41.7%. With respect to 3-point attempts, Creighton made 9 of 34 tries (26.5%). Overall, the Bluejays went 17 for 59 from the field which gave them a rate of 28.8%. The Bluejays permitted the Hoyas to make 27 of 58 attempts from the floor which had them sitting at 46.6% in the matchup. They finished 38.5% from distance by going 10 out of 26 and finished the game at 9 out of 18 from the charity stripe (50.0%). In the matter of how they rebounded, Creighton permitted Georgetown to pull down 44 in all (12 on the offensive side).

Marcus Zegarowski ended up being a factor for the Bluejays for the matchup. He made 7 out of 8 in the game for a rate of 87.5%, and earned 4 rebounds. Zegarowski accumulated 17 points in his 34 minutes on the court and accumulated 4 assists in this contest. Someone else that ended being a contributor for Creighton was Mitch Ballock. He ended up with 2 dimes in his 29 mins played, and he knocked down 3 out of 8 from the floor. Ballock wrapped this one up going 37.5% from the floor while earning 8 points and 5 rebounds.

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take UC Santa Barbara (+8)

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