Pepperdine Waves vs BYU Cougars Prediction, 1/14/2023 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Pepperdine Waves vs BYU Cougars

Date: Saturday, January 14, 2023

Location: Marriott Center in Provo, UT

TV: Youtube TV

The BYU Cougars (13-6) will try to defeat the Pepperdine Waves (7-10) at Marriott Center on Saturday.

The Pepperdine Waves faced off with Pacific and took a loss by a final of 80-75 in their last game. Pepperdine wrapped up the game having earned a 38.7% FG percentage (24 out of 62) and knocked down 6 of their 17 shots from beyond the arc. At the free throw line, the Waves made 21 of 29 attempts for a rate of 72.4%. In the matter of pulling down boards, they earned 40 with 11 of them being offensive. They also recorded 11 assists in this matchup while forcing the opposition into 13 turnovers and having 6 steals. In terms of defense, Pepperdine allowed their opponent to shoot 45.9% from the field on 28 of 61 shooting. Pacific distributed 9 dimes and had 7 steals for the contest. In addition, Pacific snagged 31 rebounds (7 offensive, 24 defensive), but wasn't able to record a block. Pacific walked away from this one shooting 63.6% at the free throw line by burying 14 of their 22 shots. They knocked down 10 of their 26 tries from beyond the perimeter. When talking about fouls, the Waves ended up walking away with 20 while Pacific accounted for 19 fouls.

Maxwell Lewis is a player who was a major factor in this game. He ended up walking away with 30 points on 9 out of 20 shooting. He was on the court for 36 minutes and grabbed 14 rebounds. He finished shooting 45.0% from the floor and also totaled 2 assists.

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Pepperdine enters this contest with a record of 7-10 so far this season. They currently have an average of 78.4 pts per game (55th in Division 1) while hitting 46.6% from the floor. The Waves are shooting 38.4% on shots beyond the perimeter (147 of 383) and 70.0% from the charity stripe. As a unit, Pepperdine is grabbing 37.9 rebounds per contest and has racked up 255 assists for the season, which is 57th in the country in terms of passing the ball. They lose possession by turning the ball over 14.5 times per contest and as a team are committing 17.2 personal fouls on a nightly basis.

On the defensive end of the court, the Waves are forcing their opponents into 12.1 turnovers per contest while drawing 17.2 personal fouls. They are currently ranked 261st in college basketball in allowing assists to their opponents with 226 relinquished so far this season. The Waves defensively are giving up a FG percentage of 43.4% (483 of 1,114) and they surrender 37.3 boards per contest as a basketball team. They are giving up 33.4% on shots from distance and they are ranked 344th in the nation in PPG allowed (77.2).

When they last played, the BYU Cougars took home the win by a final score of 68-48 when they faced San Diego. The Cougars collected 28 defensive boards and 3 offensive rebounds for a total of 31 in this contest. They also gave up possession of the ball 12 times, while earning 7 steals for the contest. San Diego was called for 18 fouls for the matchup which took the Cougars to the free throw line for a total of 18 tries. They were able to bury 16 of them for a clip of 88.9%. In reference to shots from 3-point land, BYU converted 4 of their 15 tries (26.7%). Overall, the Cougars finished shooting 24 out of 48 from the field which gave them a percentage of 50.0%. The Cougars permitted San Diego to bury 18 of their 57 tries from the field which had them shooting 31.6% for the matchup. They finished shooting 13.0% from beyond the arc by going 3 out of 23 and walked away from this one shooting 9 out of 10 at the free throw line (90.0%). In the matter of rebounding, BYU allowed San Diego to pull down 26 in total (8 offensive).

Fousseyni Traore was important for the Cougars for the contest. He racked up 15 points in his 18 minutes on the hardwood, but finished this game without an assist. He made 6 of 8 in the matchup for a field goal rate of 75.0%, and accounted for 5 rebounds.

BYU has a win-loss mark of 13-6 so far this season. The Cougars have committed 19.4 personal fouls per contest and they connect on 70.2% from the free throw line. They are earning an assist 15.6 times per contest (53rd in college basketball) and they lose possession by turning the ball over 15.6 times per game. BYU has 1,416 pts this year (74.5 per game) and they snag 40.2 boards per contest. On the offensive side of the court, the Cougars are shooting 44.1% from the field, which ranks 210th in college hoops.

The BYU defense concedes 33.2% on shots from 3-point land (136 of 410) and their opponents are converting on 66.3% of their free throw shots. They have allowed 11.7 assists and 32.1 rebounds every game, which is 119th and 71st in college basketball. The Cougars on the defensive end are ranked 120th in college hoops in PPG surrendered with 66.7. They are able to force 14.5 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 41.1% from the floor (84th in college hoops).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take BYU

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