VCU Rams vs BYU Cougars Prediction, 3/20/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: VCU Rams vs BYU Cougars

Date: Thursday, March 20, 2025

Location: Ball Arena in Denver, CO

TV: TNT

Odds/Point Spread: VCU (+3)

The BYU Cougars (24-9) will try to defeat the VCU Rams (28-6) at Ball Arena on Thursday in the 1st round of the NCAA Tournament. VCU opens this game as 3-point dogs from Vegas oddsmakers. The over/under is set at 146.

The VCU Rams faced off with George Mason and notched a win by a score of 68-63 in their last game. VCU wrapped up the game with a 40.4% field goal percentage (19 of 47) and made 8 out of their 25 three-point attempts. When they shot from the free throw line, the Rams converted 22 of 27 shots for a percentage of 81.5%. With regard to grabbing rebounds, they collected a total of 34 with 9 of them being of the offensive sort. They also recorded 10 assists for this game while creating 11 turnovers and having 7 steals. When discussing defense, VCU allowed the other team to shoot 33.9% from the field on 19 of 56 shooting. George Mason totaled 13 assists and had 11 steals in this contest. Furthermore, George Mason collected 26 rebounds (8 offensive, 18 defensive), but couldn't earn a rejection. George Mason finished shooting 84.2% from the charity stripe by knocking down 16 of their 19 attempts. They also knocked down 9 of their 21 attempts from distance. In relation to personal fouls, the Rams ended up with 20 and George Mason had 22 personal fouls.

Max Shulga is a guy who was a major contributor in the game. He ended up shooting 44.4% from the field and dished out 3 assists. He saw the court for 37 mins played and also totaled 4 boards. He racked up 18 points on 4 out of 9 shooting.

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VCU steps onto the hardwood with a record of 28-6 on the year. They currently have an average of 77.1 points per outing (93rd in the nation) while connecting on 44.6% from the floor. The Rams are shooting 33.4% on shots from downtown (322 of 964) and 74.4% from the free throw line. As a unit, VCU is snagging 38.4 boards per contest and is sitting with 509 assists on the year, which has them ranked 68th in D-1 in terms of passing. They are turning it over 11.3 times per contest and as a unit are committing 17.9 fouls every game.

On the defensive end, the Rams are forcing their opponents into 13.8 turnovers per game while drawing 17.1 fouls. They surrender 30.4% on three-point shots and they rank 8th in Division 1 in PPG allowed (62.4). The Rams defense is giving up a FG percentage of 38.8% (720 of 1,857) and they concede 33.3 rebounds per game as a squad. They currently rank 21st in Division 1 in allowing assists to the opposition with 337 conceded on the season.

In their last game, the BYU Cougars walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 74-54 when they played Houston. The Cougars earned 20 defensive rebounds and 10 offensive rebounds for a total of 30 for this game. They also turned the ball over 13 times, while getting 7 steals in this game. Houston committed 13 fouls for this game which got the Cougars to the free throw line for a total of 10 attempts. They were able to make 10 of them for a rate of 100.0%. Concerning shooting from downtown, BYU buried 6 of their 28 tries (21.4%). When all was said and done, the Cougars finished shooting 19 out of 60 from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 31.7%. The Cougars allowed Houston to make 23 of 55 attempts from the floor which gave them a rate of 41.8% for the game. They went 38.5% from three-point range by going 10 of 26 and finished the game at 18 of 23 at the charity stripe (78.3%). When discussing cleaning up the glass, BYU permitted Houston to collect 34 in total (11 offensive).

Keba Keita ended up being a factor for the Cougars in the matchup. He converted 6 out of 9 in this game giving him a rate of 66.7%, and had 12 rebounds. He racked up 14 points in his 22 minutes on the court, but didn't get an assist.

BYU has a win-loss mark of 24-9 on the year. The Cougars are responsible for committing 16.1 personal fouls every game and they connect on 70.5% from the charity stripe. They are earning an assist 17.2 times per contest (10th in college) and they lose possession by turning the ball over 12.1 times per game. BYU has totaled 2,672 pts for the season (81.0 per game) and they collect 37.5 boards per contest. On the offensive side of the ball, the Cougars are connecting on 48.2% from the floor, which ranks 26th in D-1.

The BYU defense surrenders 34.8% from downtown (296 of 851) and opponents are converting on 70.6% of their shots from the free throw line. They have conceded 13.0 assists and 31.5 boards per game, which is 176th and 29th in Division 1. The Cougars defensively are ranked 147th in college in points allowed per game with 70.9. They have forced 11.9 TO's per game and have let teams shoot 42.9% from the floor (125th in D-1).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take VCU (+3)

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