The UCLA Bruins take on the Washington State Cougars. Check out our college basketball odds series for our UCLA Washington State prediction and pick.
Washington State has encountered tough sledding this season. The Cougars are under .500 and are 0-2 in the Pac-12, having lost the first two games of the league schedule which were played at the start of December. They lost to Utah at home in overtime, a real missed opportunity to bag a high-value win and simultaneously change the trajectory of their season. They battled Baylor for 40 full minutes but lost by six. They have shown that they can play competitively against really good teams, but they can't close the sale. They have nothing to show for all their hard work. There's an extra measure of skill and quality this team lacks in crunch time. Finding a way to make plays in big moments is what this team so desperately needs under coach Kyle Smith.
Here are the UCLA-Washington State College Basketball odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
College Basketball Odds: UCLA-Washington State Odds
UCLA Bruins: -8.5 (-110)
Washington State Cougars: +8.5 (-110)
Over: 134.5 (-110)
Under: 134.5 (-110)
Why UCLA Could Cover the Spread
The Bruins are simply a much better team, and it's worth emphasizing the point that UCLA has finally started to play like a better team in recent weeks. The Bruins handled Kentucky. They crushed Maryland on the road. They are playing defense the way experts expected them to play all season long. This defense that we have seen in recent weeks — a vintage Mick Cronin defense — did not show up against Illinois or Baylor in Las Vegas in late November. UCLA needed some time to figure things out, but it seems the Bruins have finally put the pieces together on defense.
Washington State simply does not shoot well enough to threaten UCLA. The Cougars have struggled to make 3-pointers this season, especially in late-game, crunch-time situations. If UCLA has just a four-point lead with four minutes left, and it seems like the Bruins might not cover the spread, they can simply wait for Washington State to miss a series of 3-pointers. The Bruins can get runouts for easy baskets, or they can draw fouls and add a lot of points at the free throw line and still win by 10 to 12 points.
Why Washington State Could Cover the Spread
The Cougars are under .500, but as we have shown, they battle. They gave Baylor as tough a game as UCLA did. They took Utah into overtime, and Utah is a team which pounded Arizona by 15 points earlier this season. The Utes are 3-0 in the Pac-12 and narrowly lost to nationally-ranked TCU. Washington State might not win a ton of games, but we have seen on several occasions that the Cougars can keep games close against quality opponents and cover spreads. This is one of the better national examples of a team which doesn't win but has been able to cover in several instances this season.
Final UCLA-Washington State Prediction & Pick
Washington State is a much better team than its overall record indicates. UCLA should win outright, but in terms of the spread, this is simply a very hard call to make. The recommendation is to stay away from the game, but if you lean in one direction, lean to the Cougars, who desperately need a big result and — while they might not get it — could at least make UCLA sweat.
Final UCLA-Washington State Prediction & Pick: Washington State +8.5
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