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The California Golden Bears will head to the desert as they face the Arizona Wildcats on Thursday at the McKale Memorial Center. We're here to share our college basketball odds series, make a Cal-Arizona prediction, and pick while showing you how to watch.
Cal edged out the Stanford Cardinal 73-71 on Friday. Initially, they trailed 40-36 at halftime. But they battled back in the second half to make things interesting with less than a minute left to go. With 58 seconds left to go and Stanford leading 71-70, Jalen Celestine drew a foul and made both free-throw attempts. They got back and defense and played tough while making things difficult for Kanaan Carlyle, who missed a layup and had to foul Celestine, who made just one free throw. Then, Carlyle missed another layup, which gave the Golden Bears the win.
Jaylon Tyson led the Golden Bears with 14 points and six rebounds. Also, Fardaws Aimaq added 13 points and 12 rebounds. Keonte Kennedy added 11 points, while Jalen Cone had 10. Additionally, Grant Newell had 11 points off the bench. Cal won the game despite shooting 41 percent from the field and 23.8 percent from beyond the arc. Yet, they also had six steals, which helped force 12 turnovers.
Arizona is coming off an 87-78 road victory over the Oregon Ducks on Saturday. At first, they led 45-38 at halftime, and they maintained the lead to secure the win. Caleb Love led the way with 36 points. Moreover, Kylan Boswell added 14 points. Keshad Johnson had 12 points. Meanwhile, Oumar Ballo had 10 points and nine rebounds. The Wildcats finished with 49.1 percent shooting, including 52.6 percent from beyond the arc. Also, they won despite losing the board battle 32-29. But they also had seven steals, which helped cause 14 turnovers.
Arizona leads the head-to-head series 74-30. Amazingly, they have won 14 in a row in this series. The Wildcats defeated the Golden Bears 100-81 at Berkeley on December 29. Now, they will play host to the Golden Bears, who they are 39-11 against all-time.
Here are the college basketball odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
College Basketball Odds: Cal-Arizona Odds
California: +17.5 (-110)
Moneyline: +1200
Arizona: -17.5 (-110)
Moneyline: -3000
Over: 157.5 (-115)
Under: 157.5 (-105)
How to Watch Cal vs. Arizona
Time: 8:30 PM ET/5:30 PM PT
TV: Pac-12 Network
Stream: fuboTV (Click for free trial)
Why Cal Will Cover The Spread/Win
Cal comes into this game with a 10-9-1 mark against the spread. Also, they are 3-1 against the spread on the road. The Golden Bears are also 4-4-1 against the spread within their conference.
Tyson is their best player, as he comes in averaging 20.6 points and 7.2 rebounds per game. Additionally. he is shooting 48.8 percent, including 36.7 percent from the triples. Aimaq is averaging 15.3 points and 10.8 rebounds per game. Moreover, he is shooting 50 percent from the field, including 35.5 percent from the triples. Cone is averaging 14.2 points per game. Yet, he is only shooting 32.4 percent from the field, including 31.9 percent from beyond the arc. Kennedy is averaging 9.8 points and 5.2 rebounds per game. Likewise, he is also struggling to shoot, hitting 41.2 percent from the field, including 27.9 percent from the triples.
Cal will cover the spread if they can shoot the ball efficiently. Then, they need to close out and play good defense.
Why Arizona Will Cover The Spread/Win
Arizona is coming into this game with a 13-7 record against the spread. Additionally, they are also 8-2 against the spread at home. The Wildcats are also 4-5 against the spread against their conference.
Love is their best player. Currently, he is averaging 19.3 points per game while shooting 44.9 percent from the field. Pelle Larsson is their next-best player, averaging 12.8 points while shooting 54 percent from the field, including 45.7 percent from the three-point line. However, he only managed seven points in his last game and will look to do more in this one. Ballo is averaging 12.3 points and nine rebounds per game. Furthermore, he is shooting 58.7 percent from the field. Keshad Johnson has played well, averaging 11.8 points and 6.3 rebounds per game. Likewise, he is shooting 55.4 percent from the field. Boswell has been solid, averaging 9.8 points per game while producing as a great fifth option for the Wildcats.
Arizona will cover the spread if their best players can continue to shoot the ball well and not make mistakes. Then, they need to play tough defense and not let Tyson hurt them with his shooting touch that can burn any team.
Final Cal-Arizona Prediction & Pick
The last time these teams met, the Wildcats went into Berkeley and stomped the Golden Bears. Now, they are at home and should continue to take care of business as they try to position themselves higher up the standings. Arizona will cover the spread in this one in front of their fans.
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Final Cal-Arizona Prediction & Pick: Arizona -17.5 (-110)
