Santa Clara Broncos vs BYU Cougars Prediction, 2/16/2023 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Santa Clara Broncos vs BYU Cougars

Date: Thursday, February 16, 2023

Location: Marriott Center in Provo, UT

TV: ESPN+

The Santa Clara Broncos (19-8) are en route to Marriott Center on Thursday where they will play the BYU Cougars (16-12).

The Santa Clara Broncos played Loyola Marymount and walked away with a win by a score of 71-69 in their last game. In relation to fouls, the Broncos ended up with 17 while Loyola Marymount accumulated 20 fouls. They made 7 out of their 29 attempts from beyond the perimeter. Loyola Marymount finished 94.1% when shooting free throws by knocking down 16 of their 17 attempts. On top of that, Loyola Marymount grabbed 37 rebounds (14 offensive, 23 defensive), but wasn't able to put a block in the stat sheet. Loyola Marymount distributed 12 dimes and had 6 steals for this game. With regard to defense, Santa Clara allowed the other team to go 37.1% from the floor on 23 out of 62 shooting. They also doled out 11 assists for the contest as well as forcing 11 turnovers and having 4 steals. When talking about pulling down boards, they earned 21 with 2 of them being on the offensive end. At the charity stripe, the Broncos made 20 of their 24 attempts for a rate of 83.3%. Santa Clara wrapped up the contest with a 51.1% FG percentage (23 of 45) and converted 5 of 11 three-point shots.

Brandin Podziemski is one guy who was a major contributor in this game. He recorded 30 points on 9 out of 13 shooting. He played for 39 minutes and pulled down 5 rebounds. He walked away from this one shooting 69.2% from the floor and dished out 3 dimes.

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Santa Clara enters this contest with a mark of 19-8 this year. They are averaging 75.5 points per outing (93rd in D-1) on 44.6% from the floor. The Broncos are connecting on 36.0% on 3-pointers (218 of 605) and 72.0% from the charity stripe. As a team, Santa Clara is snagging 38.2 rebounds per contest and has accounted for 364 dimes so far this season, which is 119th in Division 1 in terms of passing. They are losing possession via turnover 12.8 times per game and as a team are committing 15.4 fouls on a nightly basis.

When they are on the defensive end, the Broncos are forcing 11.9 turnovers per game while drawing 17.6 fouls. They rank 321st in the nation in giving up assists to their opponents with 384 relinquished on the campaign. The Broncos defense is allowing an opponent shooting percentage of 43.7% (724 of 1,657) and they relinquish 32.9 rebounds per contest as a team. They are giving up 36.6% from 3-point land and they rank 265th in D-1 in points per game allowed (72.6).

When they last stepped on the hardwood, the BYU Cougars went home defeated by a final of 88-81 against Gonzaga. The Cougars earned 21 defensive boards and 6 offensive boards for a total of 27 in this matchup. They turned it over 11 times, while recording 5 steals in the game. Gonzaga earned 14 fouls in this contest which took the Cougars to the free throw line for a total of 12 attempts. They were able to convert 11 of the free throw tries for a rate of 91.7%. When talking about shooting from distance, BYU buried 8 of 24 attempts (33.3%). When the game finished, the Cougars finished the game shooting 31 for 65 from the floor which had them at 47.7%. The Cougars allowed Gonzaga to convert 28 out of 55 tries from the floor which left them shooting 50.9% in this matchup. They finished 31.6% from distance by going 6 of 19 and finished the contest at 26 out of 34 at the free throw line (76.5%). In relation to rebounding, BYU allowed Gonzaga to pull down 31 in all (7 on the offensive glass).

Spencer Johnson ended up being a major contributor for the Cougars in this contest. He knocked down 6 out of 11 in the game for a rate of 54.5%, and accumulated 3 rebounds. He had 17 points in his 35 mins on the hardwood and had 7 assists for the contest.

BYU has a record of 16-12 so far this season. The Cougars are committing 19.2 fouls every game and they connect on 71.2% from the charity stripe. They are earning an assist 15.0 times per game (66th in D-1) and they are turning it over 14.8 times per contest. BYU has tallied 2,118 points this season (75.6 per contest) and they pull down 37.9 boards per contest. As an offensive team, the Cougars are shooting 45.3% from the floor, which is 141st in college hoops.

The BYU defense concedes 34.3% on three-point shots (204 of 595) and their opponents are knocking down 69.4% of their shots from the charity stripe. They have surrendered 12.4 assists and 32.1 rebounds on a nightly basis, which ranks 158th and 73rd in college hoops. The Cougars defensively are ranked 186th in college basketball in points per game surrendered with 69.8. They are forcing 14.4 turnovers on a nightly basis and have let teams shoot 42.9% from the floor (142nd in the nation).

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take BYU

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