UCF Knights vs West Virginia Mountaineers Prediction, 3/8/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: UCF Knights vs West Virginia Mountaineers

Date: Saturday, March 8, 2025

Location: WVU Coliseum in Syracuse, NY

TV: ESPN+

The UCF Knights (16-14) are en route to WVU Coliseum on Saturday where they will try to defeat the West Virginia Mountaineers (18-12).

The UCF Knights faced off with Oklahoma State and took home the win by a score of 83-70 in their last contest. When talking about fouls, the Knights finished with 16 while Oklahoma State totaled 21 fouls. They converted 7 of 25 attempts from beyond the arc. Oklahoma State walked away from this one shooting 86.7% from the charity stripe by making 13 of 15 shots. On top of that, Oklahoma State totaled 24 rebounds (6 offensive, 18 defensive), but wasn't able to record a block. Oklahoma State earned 14 assists and had 12 steals for the contest. When it comes to the defense, UCF allowed 37.9% from the field on 25 out of 66 shooting. They also distributed 16 dimes in this matchup as well as forcing 9 turnovers and getting 6 steals. With respect to rebounding, they compiled a total of 47 with 14 of them being of the offensive sort. At the charity stripe, the Knights knocked down 27 of their 30 shots for a rate of 90.0%. UCF wrapped up the game having earned a 41.1% FG percentage (23 of 56) and made 10 out of their 28 shots from distance.

Darius Johnson is a guy who was a major factor in this contest. He finished the game shooting 55.6% from the field and distributed 5 dimes. He saw the court for 36 minutes played and grabbed 5 rebounds. He ended up finishing with 36 points on 10 out of 18 shooting.

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UCF will enter this game with a win-loss record of 16-14 so far this year. They have an average of 79.0 points per outing (61st in D-1) while connecting on 42.1% from the floor. The Knights are connecting on 33.0% from downtown (254 of 769) and 78.3% from the charity stripe. As a unit, UCF is collecting 36.8 rebounds per game and has accumulated 424 assists for the year, which has them ranked 160th in D-1 in terms of passing the ball. They lose possession by turning the ball over 12.4 times per game and as a group they commit 17.3 fouls on a nightly basis.

When they are on the defensive end, the Knights are able to force 13.3 turnovers on a nightly basis and they draw 19.0 personal fouls. They surrender 33.3% on shots from downtown and they are 346th in college hoops in PPG from their opponents (80.1). The Knights are allowing a field goal percentage of 45.4% (865 of 1,907) and they surrender 38.1 rebounds per game as a group. They are currently ranked 322nd in college in giving up assists to the opposition with 454 surrendered so far this season.

When they last stepped on the hardwood, the West Virginia Mountaineers walked away with a victory by a final of 71-69 when they played Utah. In relation to team rebounding, West Virginia allowed Utah to get 36 in total (10 on the offensive side). They wrapped up this game 32.1% from beyond the arc by hitting 9 of 28 and walked away from this one shooting 22 out of 32 from the charity stripe (68.8%). The Mountaineers permitted Utah to make 19 of their 50 tries from the floor which left them with a rate of 38.0% in this matchup. When all was said and done, the Mountaineers ended up shooting 26 for 57 from the floor which gave them a rate of 45.6%. When discussing shots from distance, West Virginia made 8 of their 23 attempts (34.8%). They were able to knock down 11 of the free throws for a percentage of 68.8%. Utah committed 17 fouls for this contest which took the Mountaineers to the free throw line for a total of 16 tries. They also coughed up the ball 10 times, while recording 7 steals for this contest. The Mountaineers earned 21 defensive rebounds and 6 offensive boards totaling 27 in this contest.

Javon Small was important for the Mountaineers for this contest. He tallied 18 points in his 37 minutes on the hardwood and accumulated 7 assists for this contest. He made 7 out of 14 in the game giving him a field goal percentage of 50.0%, and had 4 rebounds.

West Virginia has a mark of 18-12 for the season. As an offensive unit, the Mountaineers are shooting 42.6% from the field, which is ranked 301st in college. West Virginia has 2,049 points for the year (68.3 per contest) and they collect 33.0 rebounds per contest. Their rate of assisting teammates is at 13.8 times per contest (174th in the nation) and they turn it over 10.4 times per contest. The Mountaineers are responsible for committing 16.6 personal fouls per contest and they hit 72.5% from the free throw line.

The West Virginia defense allows 29.5% on shots from 3-point land (180 of 611) and their opponents are knocking down 74.0% of their foul shots. They concede 10.6 dimes and 36.7 boards on a nightly basis, which ranks them 23rd and 302nd in those defensive categories. The Mountaineers on the defensive side of the court are 19th in college in points given up per game with 64.7. They are forcing their opponents into 12.8 TO's per game and have allowed teams to shoot 40.8% from the field (40th in the nation).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take UCF

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