UCLA Bruins vs Arizona Wildcats Prediction, 1/21/2023 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: UCLA Bruins vs Arizona Wildcats

Date: Saturday, January 21, 2023

Location: McKale Center in Tucson, AZ

TV: ABC

The Arizona Wildcats (15-3) are welcoming the UCLA Bruins (16-2) at McKale Center on Saturday.

The UCLA Bruins stepped onto the hardwood against Colorado and went home with a win by a final score of 68-54 in their last contest. UCLA finished the contest having earned a 38.1% field goal percentage (24 out of 63) and converted 4 of 19 3-pointers. From the free throw line, the Bruins converted 16 of 24 tries for a percentage of 66.7%. With regard to hauling in rebounds, they compiled 37 with 16 of them being of the offensive variety. They also distributed 11 assists for the game while creating 21 turnovers and earning 15 steals. Concerning defense, UCLA allowed 30.6% from the floor on 15 out of 49 shooting. Colorado totaled 8 dimes and had 7 steals for this game. In addition, Colorado totaled 35 boards (11 offensive, 24 defensive), but didn't notch a block. Colorado finished the game at 87.0% from the free throw line by knocking down 20 of 23 tries. They knocked down 4 out of their 14 attempts from beyond the perimeter. In reference to fouls, the Bruins walked away with 20 and Colorado totaled 16 fouls.

Jaime Jaquez is one player who was important in this matchup. He accounted for 23 points on 11 out of 23 shooting. He was on the court for 38 minutes and also totaled 13 boards. He shot 47.8% from the field and distributed 2 assists.

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UCLA will enter this contest with a win-loss record of 16-2 for the season. They cough up possession 9.8 times per game and as a group are committing 15.3 personal fouls every game. As a unit, UCLA is pulling in 35.7 rebounds per game and has totaled 276 assists so far this year, which is 84th in college basketball in terms of passing the ball. The Bruins are connecting on 36.1% on shots from downtown (113 of 313) and 72.0% from the free throw line. They currently have an average of 76.7 points per contest (71st in Division 1) while shooting 47.5% from the field.

On the defensive end, the Bruins have forced 17.0 turnovers per game while drawing 16.1 personal fouls. They rank 82nd in the country in giving up assists to their opponents with 207 relinquished for the year. The Bruins are allowing a FG percentage of 40.9% (400 of 979) and they concede 32.6 rebounds per contest as a squad. They surrender 29.0% on shots from beyond the arc and they rank 12th in college hoops in PPG allowed (59.8).

In their last game, the Arizona Wildcats went home defeated by a final of 87-68 when they played Oregon. Regarding rebounding, Arizona allowed Oregon to grab 38 in all (11 on the offensive glass). They finished the game shooting 34.4% from three-point range by going 11 out of 32 and ended up going 8 of 10 at the free throw line (80.0%). The Wildcats permitted Oregon to bury 34 of their 64 attempts from the field which gave them a percentage of 53.1% for the contest. At the conclusion of this game, the Wildcats shot 24 for 64 from the field which had them shooting 37.5%. When talking about 3-pointers, Arizona knocked down 9 out of 25 attempts (36.0%). They were able to knock down 11 of the free throws for a clip of 84.6%. Oregon committed 15 fouls in the matchup which got the Wildcats to the charity stripe for 13 attempts. They also coughed up the ball 16 times, while earning 10 steals for this game. The Wildcats were able to snag 19 defensive rebounds and 11 offensive boards totaling 30 for the matchup.

Kylan Boswell was important for the Wildcats for this contest. He earned 15 points in his 23 mins on the court and had 1 assist in this contest. He made 6 of 11 for the matchup giving him a rate of 54.5%, and earned 1 rebound.

Arizona has a mark of 15-3 so far this season. The Wildcats commit 17.3 fouls per contest and they go 73.4% from the charity stripe. They are dishing out assists 19.8 times per game (2nd in college basketball) and they turn the ball over 14.1 times per contest. Arizona has tallied 1,527 points on the year (84.8 per contest) and they average 41.5 rebounds per contest. When it comes to executing on offense, the Wildcats are shooting 49.2% from the floor, which has them ranked 13th in college basketball.

The Wildcats defensively are ranked 290th in Division 1 in PPG given up with 73.4. They are forcing 12.5 TO's every game and allow teams to shoot 41.1% from the floor (75th in the nation). The Arizona defense gives up 32.6% on shots from beyond the arc (153 of 469) and opponents are knocking down 69.2% of their shots from the free throw line. They have allowed 13.3 assists and 33.2 total rebounds per game, which is ranked 232nd and 126th in those categories on the defensive end.

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Arizona

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