California Golden Bears vs SMU Mustangs Prediction, 1/29/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: California Golden Bears vs SMU Mustangs

Date: Wednesday, January 29, 2025

Location: Moody Coliseum in Dallas, TX

TV: ESPN+

Moody Coliseum is the location where the SMU Mustangs (15-5) will attempt to beat the California Golden Bears (11-9) on Wednesday.

The California Golden Bears faced off with Miami and took home the win by a score of 98-94 in their last game. California walked away from the contest having earned a 49.2% FG percentage (31 out of 63) and made 9 out of their 28 shots from downtown. From the charity stripe, the Golden Bears buried 27 of 36 shots for a percentage of 75.0%. With regard to hauling in boards, they collected a total of 35 with 6 of them being of the offensive variety. They also doled out 13 assists for the matchup as well as forcing 6 turnovers and earning 5 steals. Pertaining to the defense, California allowed the other team to shoot 45.6% from the field on 31 of 68 shooting. Miami distributed 14 dimes and had 4 steals in the game. Additionally, Miami collected 31 rebounds (5 offensive, 26 defensive), but didn't have a block. Miami finished the game at 85.7% at the free throw line by knocking down 18 of their 21 attempts. They also knocked down 14 out of their 27 attempts from 3-point land. Regarding personal fouls, the Golden Bears ended up with 15 while Miami racked up 24 personal fouls.

Jeremiah Wilkinson is a player who played a role for the matchup. He accumulated 30 points on 10 out of 22 shooting. He was on the court for 40 minutes played and pulled down 4 rebounds. He finished the game shooting 45.5% from the field and recorded 1 assist.

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California comes into this matchup with a win-loss mark of 11-9 for the campaign. They turn it over 11.7 times per game and as a group they commit 16.3 fouls per contest. As a team, California is collecting 37.2 rebounds per game and has accumulated 208 dimes on the year, which ranks 355th in college in terms of passing the rock. The Golden Bears are connecting on 33.1% on 3-pointers (146 of 441) and 75.2% from the charity stripe. They are averaging 76.3 pts per game (136th in Division 1) while shooting 43.6% from the field.

When they are on the defensive end, the Golden Bears are forcing 10.9 turnovers per game and they draw 19.2 fouls. They give up 37.0% on shots from distance and they rank 287th in college in PPG from their opponents (75.6). The Golden Bears are giving up a shooting percentage of 46.5% (551 of 1,185) and they surrender 33.6 boards per game as a squad. They rank 92nd in D-1 in allowing assists to their opponents with 242 relinquished for the year.

When they last played, the SMU Mustangs got the win with a final of 63-57 when they played North Carolina State. The Mustangs were able to snag 33 defensive rebounds and 7 offensive rebounds for a total of 40 in the matchup. They coughed up the ball 15 times, while recording 1 steal for the contest. North Carolina State was called for 14 personal fouls in this matchup which got the Mustangs to the free throw line for a total of 12 attempts. They were able to make 11 of those for a percentage of 91.7%. With regard to shooting from downtown, SMU made 6 out of their 16 attempts (37.5%). In all, the Mustangs walked away from this one shooting 23 for 53 from the floor which gave them a percentage of 43.4%. The Mustangs allowed North Carolina State to make 19 out of 65 attempts from the field which gave them a percentage of 29.2% in this game. They finished 16.7% from distance by going 4 out of 24 and ended up shooting 15 out of 18 from the charity stripe (83.3%). Regarding rebounds, SMU permitted North Carolina State to collect 30 in total (10 offensive).

Samet Yigitoglu was important for the Mustangs for this game. He converted 8 out of 13 for the matchup for a field goal rate of 61.5%, and tallied 7 rebounds. He scored 20 points in his 29 minutes on the hardwood and earned 1 assist for this contest.

SMU has a record of 15-5 this season. As an offense, the Mustangs are shooting 48.0% from the field, which ranks 46th in college hoops. SMU has 1,662 pts so far this season (83.1 per contest) and they pull in 40.1 boards per game. They are assisting teammates 16.3 times per game (48th in college) and they lose possession by turning the ball over 11.6 times per contest. The Mustangs are responsible for committing 16.7 fouls per game and they hit 73.7% from the free throw line.

The SMU defense gives up 34.3% on 3-pointers (164 of 478) and their opponents are connecting on 75.1% of their free throw shots. They have relinquished 15.1 dimes and 33.0 boards per contest, which is ranked 318th and 109th in the country. The Mustangs on defense are ranked 208th in D-1 in points allowed per game with 72.2. They are forcing 12.5 turnovers per game and allow teams to shoot 40.9% from the field (60th in college hoops).

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take SMU

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