Utah Utes vs Baylor Bears Prediction, 12/31/2024 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Utah Utes vs Baylor Bears

Date: Tuesday, December 31, 2024

Location: Foster Pavilion in Waco, TX

TV: ESPN+

The Utah Utes (8-3) are traveling to Foster Pavilion on Tuesday where they will attempt to beat the Baylor Bears (8-3).

The Utah Utes took the court against Iowa and walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 95-88 in their last game. Utah finished the game with a 51.5% FG percentage (35 of 68) and converted 7 of their 21 3-pointers. From the charity stripe, the Utes converted 11 of 16 shots for a rate of 68.8%. With regard to hauling in boards, they earned 34 with 9 of them being of the offensive sort. They also distributed 24 dimes for the game in addition to creating 11 turnovers and getting 8 steals. In terms of defending, Utah allowed the other team to go 53.1% from the field on 34 out of 64 shooting. Iowa recorded 15 assists and had 8 steals in this matchup. Furthermore, Iowa collected 27 rebounds (8 offensive, 19 defensive), but didn't have a block. Iowa finished the game at 75.0% when shooting free throws by knocking down 18 of 24 tries. They buried 9 of 20 tries from downtown. When discussing personal fouls, the Utes ended up walking away with 18 and Iowa had 14 personal fouls.

Mason Madsen is one guy who was a contributor in the game. He ended up going 50.0% from the floor and earned 4 dimes. He played 31 mins played and also grabbed 6 rebounds. He ended up finishing with 26 points on 10 out of 20 shooting.

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Utah will enter this contest with a win-loss mark of 8-3 so far this year. They are averaging 86.7 points per game (14th in the nation) while shooting 48.9% from the field. The Utes are shooting 37.9% on three-point shots (120 of 317) and 64.5% from the free throw line. As a team, Utah is collecting 41.7 rebounds per contest and has tallied 234 dimes on the campaign, which has them ranked 17th in D-1 in terms of passing the rock. They turn it over 10.9 times per game and as a team they commit 17.5 personal fouls per game.

When they are on the defensive end, the Utes are able to force 13.5 turnovers per contest and they draw 17.9 personal fouls. They are conceding 32.1% on shots from beyond the perimeter and they are 75th in the nation in points per game allowed (66.8). Utes are giving up a FG percentage of 38.6% (252 of 653) and they surrender 33.6 rebounds per contest as a squad. They rank 32nd in college in giving up assists with 130 conceded on the campaign.

In their last game, the Baylor Bears took home the win by a final score of 107-53 when they faced Arlington Baptist. The Bears were able to snag 42 defensive rebounds and 22 offensive boards totaling 64 for this contest. They gave up possession of the ball 19 times, while recording 15 steals in this contest. Arlington Baptist committed 12 personal fouls in the game which got the Bears to the free throw line for 17 shots. They were able to bury 12 of them for a rate of 70.6%. In relation to shots from downtown, Baylor knocked down 13 of their 27 attempts (48.1%). When the final whistle was blown, the Bears ended up going 41 for 81 from the floor which gave them a rate of 50.6%. The Bears permitted Arlington Baptist to convert 19 of their 68 attempts from the field which had them sitting at 27.9% in the matchup. They finished 21.7% from distance by shooting 5 out of 23 and ended up shooting 10 out of 16 from the free throw line (62.5%). When talking about how they cleaned up the glass, Baylor permitted Arlington Baptist to grab 27 overall (9 on the offensive glass).

Norchad Omier ended up having an impact for the Bears in this game. He tallied 19 points in his 26 minutes on the court and had 2 assists in the game. He converted 8 out of 15 in this contest giving him a rate of 53.3%, and totaled 24 rebounds.

Baylor has a win-loss record of 8-3 on the year. When it comes to executing on offense, the Bears are hitting on 49.2% from the floor, which is 36th in the country. Baylor has scored 956 pts this season (86.9 per game) and they pull down 38.3 rebounds per game. Their rate of earning assists is at 18.5 times per contest (13th in D-1) and they turn it over 11.5 times per game. The Bears commit 15.2 fouls per contest and they shoot 68.9% from the charity stripe.

The Baylor defense concedes 37.8% on 3-pointers (93 of 246) and their opposition makes 67.8% of their shots from the free throw line. They have conceded 14.6 assists and 31.0 boards per contest, which ranks 290th and 38th in college hoops. The Bears on the defensive end are ranked 141st in college hoops in PPG given up with 69.6. They are forcing their opponents into 15.5 TO's every game and have allowed teams to shoot 43.9% from the floor (231st in college).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Baylor

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