The No. 5 Arizona Wildcats look for a regular season sweep of the UCLA Bruins on Thursday night in what appears to be the last regularly scheduled matchup of these Pac-12 rivals for some time. The Wildcats (23-6, 14-4 in Pac-12 play) enter off a 103-83 victory over Oregon, while the Bruins (14-15, 9-9) have lost four straight games, including a 77-65 road defeat at Washington State last weekend. In the teams' only matchup this season, Arizona stormed back from a 19-point deficit to win on their home floor, 77-71 in January.
Tipoff is set for 9:30 p.m. ET at Pauley Pavilion. The Wildcats are favored by 9 points in the latest Arizona vs. UCLA odds, while the over/under is 147 points. Before entering any UCLA vs. Arizona picks, you'll want to see the NCAA Basketball predictions from the model at SportsLine.
The model simulates every Division I college basketball game 10,000 times. It enters Week 18 of the 2023-24 season on a 141-100 roll on all top-rated college basketball picks dating back to last season, returning more than $1,700 for $100 players. It is also off to a sizzling 25-14 start on top-rated spread picks this season. Anyone following has seen huge returns.
The model has set its sights on Arizona vs. UCLA. You can head to SportsLine to see its picks. Here are several college basketball betting lines for the game:
- UCLA vs. Arizona spread: Arizona -9
- UCLA vs. Arizona over/under: 147 points
- UCLA vs. Arizona money line: Arizona -423, UCLA +326
- UCLA vs. Arizona picks: See picks here
Why Arizona can cover
Though the Wildcats are led by guard Caleb Love, the team seems to go as point guard Kylan Boswell plays. They are 17-1 when he scores 10 or more points and 6-5 when he doesn't. Last week, Boswell excelled in wins over in-state rival Arizona State and Oregon, scoring 17 points and 19 points respectively, and making 8 of his 11 3-point attempts. Against the Bruins in January, Boswell scored three points on 1 of 6 shooting and must improve tonight for Arizona to cover the lofty spread.
In his one year at Arizona, Love has become a worthy Conference Player of the Year candidate, averaging 19.4 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 3.5 assists per game. The North Carolina transfer has become the go-to scorer for the Wildcats and will be key for them come NCAA Tournament time. Center Oumar Ballo has also upped his game late in the regular season and seeks his 10th straight double-double in tonight's contest. See which team to pick here.
Why UCLA can cover
The Bruins had turned a lackluster beginning to their season around with six straight wins in Pac-12 play before losing four straight entering tonight. While they lead the conference with 65.5 points allowed, UCLA averages only 66.2 points per game, which bodes poorly for the Bruins against an Arizona team scoring 90.3 PPG.
The home team will look to slow the Wildcats as they did in the first half of their January meeting, holding a 37-28 advantage before the second half changed completely. UCLA is led by guard Sebastian Mack (12.8 PPG) and forward Adem Bona (12.2 PPG) and boasts only four double-digit scorers. Against their long-time conference rivals, the emotion will be turned up in Pauley Pavilion tonight. See which team to pick here.
How to make Arizona vs. UCLA picks
The model has simulated Arizona vs. UCLA 10,000 times and the results are in. The model is leaning Over the total and it's also generated a point-spread pick that has all the value. You can only see the picks at SportsLine.
So who wins Bruins vs. Wildcats, and which side of the spread has all the value? Visit SportsLine now to find out which side of the spread you need to jump on, all from the model that is on a 141-100 roll on its top-ranked college basketball picks, and find out.
