Gonzaga Bulldogs vs UCLA Bruins Prediction, 3/23/2023 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Gonzaga Bulldogs vs UCLA Bruins

Date: Thursday, March 23, 2023

Location: T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, NV

TV: CBS

Odds/Point Spread: Gonzaga (+1)

The UCLA Bruins (31-5) are welcoming the Gonzaga Bulldogs (30-5) at T-Mobile Arena on Thursday. Gonzaga opens this game as 1-point dogs. The total has been set at 145.

The Gonzaga Bulldogs stepped onto the hardwood against TCU and went home with a win by a final score of 84-81 in their last game. Gonzaga wrapped up the contest having earned a 44.8% field goal percentage (30 out of 67) and buried 8 out of their 25 shots from downtown. From the free throw line, the Bulldogs converted 16 of 25 shots for a percentage of 64.0%. Pertaining to hauling in rebounds, they compiled 40 with 11 of them being on the offensive end. They also doled out 14 assists for the matchup in addition to forcing 9 turnovers and earning 6 steals. Regarding defense, Gonzaga allowed 44.8% from the floor on 30 of 67 shooting. TCU dished out 16 assists and had 3 steals for the game. Furthermore, TCU collected 33 rebounds (9 offensive, 24 defensive), but didn't record a block for the team. TCU finished the game at 60.0% at the charity stripe by burying 12 of 20 attempts. They made 9 of 25 tries from long range. In regard to personal fouls, the Bulldogs ended up walking away with 17 and TCU finished the game with 24 personal fouls.

Drew Timme is a player who was a contributor in the matchup. He accumulated 28 points on 12 out of 21 shooting. He was on the court for 32 minutes played and also totaled 8 boards. He ended up going 57.1% from the field and also totaled 3 dimes.

Get all of our NCAA Basketball Betting Picks

Gonzaga comes into this matchup with a win-loss mark of 30-5 this season. They are turning it over 10.6 times per game and as a unit they are committing 16.7 fouls per contest. As a unit, Gonzaga is pulling in 36.7 rebounds per game and has accumulated 574 assists so far this year, which is 12th in D-1 in terms of passing. The Bulldogs are shooting 38.7% on shots from 3-point land (271 of 701) and 70.1% from the free throw line. They have an average of 87.3 points per contest (1st in college basketball) while going 52.6% from the field.

Defensively, the Bulldogs are able to force 13.6 turnovers per contest while drawing 19.1 fouls. They relinquish 34.8% on 3-point attempts and they are 269th in the country in opponents PPG (73.1). The Bulldogs defense is giving up an opponent FG percentage of 44.4% (935 of 2,107) and they surrender 31.3 rebounds per game as a group. They are 201st in college basketball in allowing assists to the opposition with 423 surrendered for the season.

The last time they took the hardwood, the UCLA Bruins walked away with a victory by a final of 68-63 against Northwestern. The Bruins corralled 23 defensive boards and 3 offensive rebounds for a total of 26 in the game. They also turned the ball over 8 times, while getting 4 steals for the contest. Northwestern had 16 personal fouls for the contest which took the Bruins to the charity stripe for a total of 21 shots. They were able to make 18 of the free throw tries for a rate of 85.7%. In relation to 3-pointers, UCLA made 6 out of their 15 attempts (40.0%). When this game wrapped up, the Bruins finished shooting 22 for 44 from the field which had them at 50.0%. The Bruins allowed Northwestern to knock down 22 out of 59 attempts from the floor which had them shooting 37.3% for this game. They finished the game shooting 27.3% from 3-point land by going 6 out of 22 and walked away from this one shooting 13 out of 15 from the free throw line (86.7%). In regard to cleaning the glass, UCLA allowed Northwestern to snag 28 in all (12 on the offensive side).

Jaime Jaquez pitched in for the Bruins for the matchup. He converted 11 of 19 for the matchup for a field goal percentage of 57.9%, and accumulated 8 rebounds. He had 24 points in his 38 mins on the court and earned 4 assists in this matchup.

UCLA has a mark of 31-5 for the season. On the offensive side of the court, the Bruins are shooting 46.1% from the floor, which is ranked 81st in the nation. UCLA has scored 2,667 pts for the year (74.1 per game) and they snag 35.6 boards per game. They are dishing out assists 14.6 times per game (78th in Division 1) and they cough up possession 10.1 times per game. The Bruins commit 15.5 fouls per contest while shooting 72.8% from the charity stripe.

The Bruins on defense are ranked 6th in D-1 in PPG allowed with 60.2. They are able to force 15.7 turnovers on a nightly basis and have allowed teams to shoot 40.5% from the field (26th in college hoops). The UCLA defense surrenders 31.0% on shots from 3-point land (234 of 756) and opponents are making 70.2% of their foul shots. They relinquish 11.1 assists and 31.9 rebounds per game, which has them ranked 62nd and 54th in D-1.

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take UCLA (-1)

Get $60 worth of FREE premium member picks. No Obligation. No Salesman. No Credit Card. Fast Sign up with Instant Access Click Here