Akron Zips vs Arizona Wildcats Prediction, 3/21/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Akron Zips vs Arizona Wildcats

Date: Friday, March 21, 2025

Location: Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, WA

TV: truTV

Odds/Point Spread: Arizona (+13)

Climate Pledge Arena is the location where the Arizona Wildcats (22-12) will go up against the Akron Zips (28-6) on Friday in the 1st round of the NCAA Tournament. Akron opens as 13-point dogs. The over/under comes in at 166.

The Akron Zips stepped onto the hardwood against Miami and took home the win by a score of 76-74 in their last game. Akron ended the game with a 45.8% field goal percentage (27 of 59) and converted 9 out of their 27 3-pointers. From the charity stripe, the Zips made 13 of 16 shots for a rate of 81.3%. Concerning pulling down rebounds, they compiled a total of 30 with 11 of them being offensive. They also doled out 14 assists for the matchup in addition to forcing the other team into 10 turnovers and earning 8 steals. In regard to defending, Akron let their opponent shoot 49.1% from the floor on 28 out of 57 shooting. Miami totaled 13 dimes and had 6 steals for the matchup. Furthermore, Miami had 23 rebounds (6 offensive, 17 defensive), but finished the game with no rejections. Miami finished the contest at 60.0% at the free throw line by burying 3 of their 5 tries. They converted 15 of 30 attempts from beyond the arc. When it comes to personal fouls, the Zips ended up walking away with 9 while Miami had 14 personal fouls.

Nate Johnson is a guy who played a role in this contest. He accumulated 22 points on 8 of 13 shooting. He saw the court for 33 mins played and also snagged 2 boards. He finished the contest at 61.5% from the field and recorded 5 assists.

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Akron will play this game with a record of 28-6 for the year. They cough up possession 12.0 times per contest and as a unit are committing 17.9 personal fouls per game. As a unit, Akron is grabbing 39.0 boards per game and has accumulated 615 assists on the season, which has them ranked 2nd in the nation in terms of passing the rock. The Zips are connecting on 36.4% on shots from distance (369 of 1013) and 75.3% from the free throw line. They have an average of 84.6 pts per contest (8th in the nation) while connecting on 47.3% from the field.

On the defensive end of the court, the Zips have forced 12.6 turnovers per game while drawing 16.5 fouls. They are currently ranked 98th in Division 1 in allowing assists to the opposition with 397 surrendered for the year. The Zips defensively are allowing a FG percentage of 42.8% (895 of 2,089) and they concede 34.5 boards per game as a squad. They are relinquishing 31.4% on shots from beyond the arc while they are 255th in college in opponents PPG (74.5).

When they last played, the Arizona Wildcats took a loss by a final score of 72-64 against Houston. When it comes to rebounds, Arizona allowed Houston to get 31 overall (9 on the offensive glass). They went 39.1% from 3-point land by connecting on 9 of 23 and finished the contest at 11 of 12 at the free throw line (91.7%). The Wildcats allowed Houston to make 26 out of their 61 attempts from the field which left them with a shooting percentage of 42.6% for the matchup. When the final whistle blew, the Wildcats finished 25 for 57 from the floor which had them shooting 43.9%. In regard to shooting from distance, Arizona converted 5 of their 18 attempts (27.8%). They were able to make 9 of the free throw tries for a rate of 75.0%. Houston committed 15 fouls for the contest which took the Wildcats to the charity stripe for a total of 12 shots. They coughed up the ball 11 times, while getting 4 steals in this contest. The Wildcats snagged 27 defensive boards and 7 offensive rebounds for a total of 34 in this contest.

Caleb Love ended up being a major contributor for the Wildcats in this game. He accumulated 19 points in his 39 minutes on the hardwood and had 1 assist for this game. He buried 7 of 19 for this game giving him a rate of 36.8%, and accumulated 4 rebounds.

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Arizona has a win-loss record of 22-12 for the campaign. The Wildcats are committing 16.6 fouls every game while shooting 78.4% from the charity stripe. They are dishing out assists 16.3 times per game (33rd in Division 1) and they turn it over 11.5 times per contest. Arizona has accounted for 2,779 pts this season (81.7 per contest) and they grab 39.6 rebounds per contest. When it comes to executing on offense, the Wildcats are connecting on 47.3% from the floor, which is ranked 49th in the country.

The Arizona defense gives up 33.6% on 3-point attempts (294 of 875) and their opposition makes 71.4% of their shots from the free throw line. They surrender 13.6 dimes and 32.7 total boards per game, which is ranked 216th and 74th in college hoops. The Wildcats are ranked 199th in college in points per game surrendered with 72.4. They are forcing their opponents into 11.8 TO's every game and allow teams to shoot 41.5% from the floor (59th in Division 1).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Arizona (+13)

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