UCLA Bruins vs Kentucky Wildcats Prediction, 12/17/2022 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: UCLA Bruins vs Kentucky Wildcats

Date: Saturday, December 17, 2022

Location: Madison Square Garden in New York, NY

TV: Hulu Live TV

Madison Square Garden is the location where the Kentucky Wildcats (7-2) will compete against the UCLA Bruins (9-2) on Saturday.

The UCLA Bruins played Maryland and earned the victory with a final of 87-64 in their last contest. With respect to personal fouls, the Bruins finished with 17 while Maryland accumulated 16 personal fouls. They made 5 out of their 12 attempts from beyond the arc. Maryland finished the game shooting 61.9% when shooting free throws by converting 13 of 21 shots. On top of that, Maryland collected 35 rebounds (6 offensive, 29 defensive), but didn't notch a rejection. Maryland distributed 15 dimes and had 2 steals for this contest. With respect to defense, UCLA allowed their opponent to shoot 50.0% from the floor on 23 out of 46 shooting. They also doled out 13 dimes for the game while forcing the opposition into 23 turnovers and earning 13 steals. With regard to hauling in rebounds, they collected 28 with 3 of them being on the offensive end. When they shot from the free throw line, the Bruins made 12 of 14 tries for a rate of 85.7%. UCLA wrapped up the game with a 55.6% FG percentage (35 of 63) and made 5 of 12 3-point attempts.

Jaylen Clark is a player who was a major contributor in the matchup. He finished with 19 points on 7 out of 11 shooting. He was on the court for 22 minutes and also collected 6 rebounds. He finished shooting 63.6% from the field and also distributed 3 dimes.

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UCLA heads into this contest with a mark of 9-2 this season. They lose possession via turnover 9.6 times per game and as a team they commit 15.6 personal fouls per contest. As a team, UCLA is snagging 34.4 boards per game and has totaled 181 assists for the year, which is 28th in the nation in terms of passing the rock. The Bruins are connecting on 36.9% on 3-point shots (73 of 198) and 73.7% from the charity stripe. They currently have an average of 81.8 points per contest (30th in the nation) while going 50.4% from the field.

When they are on defense, the Bruins are forcing 17.5 turnovers per contest while drawing 16.1 personal fouls. They are 220th in the nation in allowing assists to the opposition with 137 conceded this season. The Bruins defensively are allowing and opponent field goal percentage of 43.0% (257 of 597) and they concede 31.2 rebounds per game as a team. They give up 31.0% on 3-pointers and they are ranked 53rd in college basketball in PPG from their opponents (63.0).

When they last stepped on the court, the Kentucky Wildcats went home victorious with a score of 69-59 against Yale. The Wildcats were able to snag 19 defensive rebounds and 12 offensive boards totaling 31 in the matchup. They also gave up possession of the ball 7 times, while earning 7 steals for the matchup. Yale had 13 personal fouls in this contest which got the Wildcats to the charity stripe for a total of 10 attempts. They were able to make 7 of them for a percentage of 70.0%. With regard to shooting from beyond the arc, Kentucky knocked down 4 out of their 11 attempts (36.4%). At the conclusion of this game, the Wildcats went 29 out of 58 from the floor which had them shooting 50.0%. The Wildcats permitted Yale to convert 22 out of their 51 tries from the floor which left them shooting 43.1% in the game. They finished shooting 41.2% from distance by connecting on 7 out of 17 and finished the contest at 8 of 12 from the charity stripe (66.7%). In relation to rebounding, Kentucky permitted Yale to snag 26 in total (9 on the offensive side).

Oscar Tshiebwe ended up being a factor for the Wildcats in this game. He buried 13 of 18 in this matchup for a field goal percentage of 72.2%, and tallied 12 rebounds. He earned 28 points in his 38 minutes on the court and earned 2 dimes in this contest.

Kentucky has a win-loss mark of 7-2 so far this season. The Wildcats commit 15.0 fouls per game and they connect on 68.5% from the charity stripe. Their rate of dishing out assists is at 18.4 times per game (11th in D-1) and they are turning it over 12.0 times per game. Kentucky has scored 725 pts for the campaign (80.6 per game) and they average 41.3 boards per game. As an offense, the Wildcats are connecting on 46.9% from the floor, which ranks them 95th in Division 1.

The Wildcats are ranked 81st in college basketball in points allowed per contest with 64.1. They are forcing 13.9 turnovers per game and have let teams shoot 38.1% from the field (24th in college basketball). The Kentucky defense allows 31.6% on shots from beyond the arc (62 of 196) and opponents are connecting on 71.6% of their shots from the charity stripe. They have surrendered 10.4 assists and 33.7 total rebounds per game, which has them ranked 47th and 152nd in those categories on the defensive end.

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take UCLA

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