Denver Pioneers vs BYU Cougars Prediction, 12/13/2023 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Denver Pioneers vs BYU Cougars

Date: Wednesday, December 13, 2023

Location: Marriott Center in Provo, UT

TV: BIG12|ESPN+

The Denver Pioneers (6-4) are traveling to Marriott Center on Wednesday where they will go up against the BYU Cougars (8-1).

The Denver Pioneers stepped onto the hardwood against Colorado State and ended up losing by a score of 90-80 in their last contest. Denver wrapped up the game with a 50.9% FG percentage (29 of 57) and knocked down 10 out of their 21 shots from beyond the arc. When they shot from the free throw line, the Pioneers converted 12 of their 16 tries for a rate of 75.0%. When it comes to rebounding, they compiled a total of 20 with 5 of them being of the offensive variety. They also recorded 13 assists for this game as well as forcing the other team into 8 turnovers and earning 4 steals. In the matter of defending, Denver allowed their opponent to shoot 60.4% from the field on 32 of 53 shooting. Colorado State totaled 24 dimes and had 3 steals for the matchup. Additionally, Colorado State snagged 27 boards (5 offensive, 22 defensive), but couldn't earn a rejection. Colorado State ended up going 66.7% from the charity stripe by knocking down 18 of their 27 shots. They also converted 8 out of their 17 tries from beyond the arc. In relation to personal fouls, the Pioneers ended up walking away with 18 while Colorado State finished the game with 14 personal fouls.

Tommy Bruner is someone who played a role in this contest. He left the arena with 28 points on 8 out of 22 shooting. He played 36 minutes and also totaled 4 rebounds. He ended up shooting 36.4% from the floor and also recorded 8 assists.

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Denver steps onto the hardwood with a mark of 6-4 so far this season. They lose possession by turning the ball over 9.1 times per contest and as a squad are committing 15.5 fouls per game. As a unit, Denver is collecting 39.4 rebounds per contest and has accounted for 137 dimes for the year, which is 149th in Division 1 in terms of passing. The Pioneers are shooting 38.2% on shots from downtown (84 of 220) and 73.5% from the free throw line. They have an average of 83.2 points per game (40th in the nation) while going 44.3% from the field.

Defensively, the Pioneers have forced 10.0 turnovers per contest and they draw 19.6 fouls. They give up 32.9% from beyond the arc and they rank 301st in the country in points per game allowed (76.5). The Pioneers defense is allowing a FG percentage of 45.2% (286 of 633) and they relinquish 35.3 boards per contest as a group. They currently rank 241st in college basketball in giving up assists to their opponents with 129 surrendered for the season.

When they last stepped on the court, the BYU Cougars took a loss by a final score of 73-69 when they faced Utah. In the matter of attacking the glass, BYU permitted Utah to grab 34 in total (6 on the offensive side). They finished 30.8% from 3-point land by going 8 out of 26 and ended up shooting 9 out of 13 at the free throw line (69.2%). The Cougars permitted Utah to make 28 of 57 attempts from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 49.1% in this game. When the game finished, the Cougars went 26 out of 71 from the field which had them sitting at 36.6%. Pertaining to shots from 3-point land, BYU knocked down 7 out of their 30 tries (23.3%). They were able to make 10 of the free throw attempts for a rate of 55.6%. Utah committed 16 fouls for this contest which took the Cougars to the charity stripe for 18 attempts. They also coughed up the ball 8 times, while recording 6 steals in this game. The Cougars were able to collect 21 defensive boards and 15 offensive rebounds for a total of 36 in this matchup.

Jaxson Robinson ended up being important for the Cougars for this contest. He earned 17 points in his 27 minutes on the court, but didn't get an assist. He buried 7 out of 13 for this contest for a field goal percentage of 53.8%, and had 1 rebound.

BYU has a win-loss record of 8-1 so far this year. As an offense, the Cougars are shooting 48.0% from the field, which is 52nd in D-1. BYU has totaled 804 pts this year (89.3 per game) and they average 45.2 rebounds per game. They are dishing out assists 21.3 times per contest (3rd in the country) and they turn it over 10.3 times per contest. The Cougars are committing 17.0 fouls per game while shooting 72.5% from the free throw line.

The BYU defense surrenders 23.6% on three-point shots (42 of 178) and opponents are connecting on 62.3% of their shots from the free throw line. They relinquish 11.2 dimes and 31.1 total rebounds per game, which is ranked 83rd and 39th in the nation. The Cougars are ranked 9th in the country in PPG allowed with 60.6. They are forcing their opponents into 13.2 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 40.0% from the field (61st in Division 1).

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Denver

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