Santa Clara Broncos vs Washington State Cougars Prediction, 12/16/2023 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Santa Clara Broncos vs Washington State Cougars

Date: Saturday, December 16, 2023

Location: Footprint Center in Phoenix, AZ

TV: PAC12

Footprint Center is where the Washington State Cougars (8-1) will attempt to beat the Santa Clara Broncos (7-4) on Saturday.

The Santa Clara Broncos played Utah State and walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 84-82 in their last contest. In the matter of fouls, the Broncos finished with 16 while Utah State accounted for 19 fouls. They knocked down 11 out of their 28 attempts from downtown. Utah State finished the game at 68.0% when shooting free throws by making 17 of 25 tries. On top of that, Utah State had 34 rebounds (12 offensive, 22 defensive), but wasn't able to record a rejection. Utah State recorded 14 dimes and had 10 steals for this game. In reference to defense, Santa Clara allowed the other team to shoot 37.3% from the field on 28 of 75 shooting. They also distributed 17 assists in the matchup while forcing the other team into 8 turnovers and earning 5 steals. In relation to hauling in rebounds, they earned 29 with 4 of them being of the offensive sort. From the free throw line, the Broncos knocked down 10 of their 13 attempts for a percentage of 76.9%. Santa Clara ended having earned a 57.1% field goal percentage (32 out of 56) and buried 8 of 19 three-point attempts.

Adama Bal is one guy who was a contributor in the matchup. He accumulated 18 points on 7 out of 10 shooting. He saw the court for 34 minutes and grabbed 4 boards. He finished 70.0% from the field and also distributed 3 dimes.

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Santa Clara heads into this game with a win-loss mark of 7-4 on the season. They turn the ball over 14.1 times per game and as a squad they commit 16.5 fouls every game. As a unit, Santa Clara is pulling down 39.7 boards per game and has tallied 177 dimes this season, which ranks 21st in the nation in terms of passing the ball. The Broncos are connecting on 36.6% on shots from 3-point land (93 of 254) and 68.1% from the free throw line. They have an average of 79.2 pts per contest (93rd in the nation) while going 48.0% from the field.

On defense, the Broncos are forcing their opponents into 11.6 turnovers per game while drawing 16.8 personal fouls. They give up 33.3% on shots from distance while they are 241st in college hoops in PPG allowed (73.2). The Broncos are giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 41.5% (286 of 689) and they surrender 33.4 boards per contest as a basketball team. They are ranked 270th in college hoops in giving up assists with 140 relinquished so far this season.

For their last game, the Washington State Cougars got the victory with a final of 83-65 when they played Grambling. Regarding how they attacked the glass, Washington State permitted Grambling to collect 19 in all (5 on the offensive glass). They finished 41.7% from beyond the arc via 5 of 12 and finished the contest at 18 out of 26 at the free throw line (69.2%). The Cougars allowed Grambling to convert 21 out of their 46 attempts from the field which left them with a shooting percentage of 45.7% in the matchup. When all was said and done, the Cougars went 31 for 55 from the field which had them at 56.4%. Regarding shooting from 3-point land, Washington State converted 9 of their 18 attempts (50.0%). They were able to knock down 12 of the free throw attempts for a percentage of 63.2%. Grambling had 20 fouls in this game which took the Cougars to the charity stripe for a total of 19 attempts. They also coughed it up 13 times, while earning 9 steals for this game. The Cougars pulled down 20 defensive rebounds and 10 offensive rebounds totaling 30 for the game.

Jaylen Wells ended up being a factor for the Cougars in this game. He earned 17 points in his 23 minutes on the hardwood and had 2 dimes for the game. He converted 5 out of 8 for this game giving him a field goal percentage of 62.5%, and had 4 rebounds.

Washington State has a record of 8-1 for the year. As an offensive team, the Cougars are connecting on 50.7% from the field, which has them ranked 15th in college basketball. Washington State has accounted for 724 points for the year (80.4 per game) and they collect 39.6 boards per game. They are assisting teammates 14.3 times per game (134th in the nation) and they are turning it over 10.3 times per contest. The Cougars commit 18.9 fouls per contest and they connect on 65.5% from the charity stripe.

The Washington State defense allows 27.5% on three-point shots (49 of 178) and their opponents are knocking down 75.5% of their foul shots. They have given up 8.3 dimes and 30.1 rebounds per game, ranking them 4th and 20th in those categories on the defensive end. The Cougars defensively are ranked 16th in Division 1 in PPG given up with 61.9. They are forcing 12.6 turnovers per game and allow teams to shoot 37.0% from the floor (9th in college hoops).

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Washington State

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