Colorado Buffaloes vs UCLA Bruins Prediction, 2/15/2024 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Colorado Buffaloes vs UCLA Bruins

Date: Thursday, February 15, 2024

Location: Pauley Pavilion in Los Angeles, CA

TV: ESPN

The Colorado Buffaloes (16-8) are headed to Pauley Pavilion on Thursday where they will meet the UCLA Bruins (13-11).

The Colorado Buffaloes took the court against Arizona and went home with a loss by a final score of 99-79 in their last game. Colorado ended the game having earned a 48.1% FG percentage (26 of 54) and made 5 out of their 17 3-point shots. At the charity stripe, the Buffaloes made 22 of their 26 attempts for a percentage of 84.6%. When discussing grabbing boards, they earned 27 with 6 of them being offensive. They also distributed 12 assists for the contest in addition to creating 8 turnovers and getting 6 steals. When discussing defense, Colorado allowed the other team to shoot 52.9% from the floor on 36 of 68 shooting. Arizona distributed 14 dimes and had 10 steals in this matchup. Moreover, Arizona grabbed 29 rebounds (9 offensive, 20 defensive), but couldn't earn a rejection. Arizona shot 81.0% from the charity stripe by knocking down 17 of 21 attempts. They buried 10 out of their 22 shots from distance. When discussing personal fouls, the Buffaloes ended up finishing with 17 while Arizona totaled 23 personal fouls.

Tristan Da Silva is a guy who was a contributor in this matchup. He finished 61.5% from the field but had no assists when the game ended. He was on the court for 38 mins played and also pulled down 3 boards. He racked up 20 points on 8 of 13 shooting.

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Colorado comes into this contest with a record of 16-8 for the season. They currently have an average of 80.7 pts per contest (40th in college basketball) while going 49.2% from the field. The Buffaloes are shooting 38.7% on shots from distance (159 of 411) and 79.3% from the charity stripe. As a unit, Colorado is pulling in 37.6 boards per game and is sitting with 385 dimes for the season, which ranks 46th in the nation in terms of passing the ball. They are losing possession via turnover 13.2 times per game and as a group they are committing 15.3 fouls every game.

On defense, the Buffaloes are forcing their opponents into 11.7 turnovers every game and they draw 19.0 fouls. They are ranked 39th in college hoops in giving up assists to their opponents with 263 surrendered on the year. The Buffaloes are allowing an opponent shooting percentage of 43.8% (629 of 1,437) and they concede 30.1 rebounds per contest as a basketball team. They give up 33.9% on shots from beyond the perimeter while they are 196th in college basketball in points per game from their opponents (72.3).

In their last game, the UCLA Bruins went home victorious with a score of 61-60 against California. Regarding how they rebounded, UCLA allowed California to grab 34 overall (8 on the offensive side). They went 30.8% from 3-point land by hitting 8 out of 26 and ended up shooting 10 out of 18 from the charity stripe (55.6%). The Bruins allowed California to convert 21 out of 53 attempts from the field which left them shooting 39.6% in this matchup. When all was said and done, the Bruins shot 21 for 58 from the floor which gave them a percentage of 36.2%. When discussing three-point attempts, UCLA made 5 of 17 attempts (29.4%). They were able to make 14 of the free throw attempts for a percentage of 63.6%. California had 18 personal fouls in the game which got the Bruins to the free throw line for a total of 22 shots. They also turned it over 5 times, while getting 7 steals in this matchup. The Bruins recorded 25 defensive rebounds and 9 offensive rebounds for a total of 34 in this contest.

Adem Bona ended up being important for the Bruins in the matchup. He made 3 out of 8 for this contest for a rate of 37.5%, and totaled 3 rebounds. He tallied 13 points in his 27 minutes on the hardwood and totaled 1 assist in this contest.

UCLA has a mark of 13-11 for the year. The Bruins have committed 18.5 personal fouls every game and they hit 72.0% from the free throw line. They are assisting teammates 11.5 times per contest (305th in the country) and they cough up possession 11.5 times per contest. UCLA has accounted for 1,589 points on the season (66.2 per contest) and they average 35.0 rebounds per contest. When it comes to executing on offense, the Bruins are shooting 41.7% from the floor, which is ranked 317th in the country.

The Bruins on the defensive end are ranked 17th in college hoops in points per game surrendered with 64.0. They are forcing 12.3 TO's every game and allow teams to shoot 41.1% from the floor (49th in college basketball). The UCLA defense surrenders 32.0% on shots from behind the 3-point line (179 of 560) and opponents are converting on 70.6% of their shots from the charity stripe. They give up 10.5 assists and 32.0 boards every game, which is 22nd and 39th in those categories on the defensive end.

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Colorado

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