The Northwestern Wildcats take on the UCLA Bruins. Check out our March Madness odds series for our Northwestern UCLA prediction and pick. Find out how to watch Northwestern UCLA.
The UCLA Bruins are the only team in the Pac-12 which is still alive in the NCAA Tournament. Arizona lost, Arizona State lost, and USC lost in the opening round of the Big Dance. The Bruins have to carry the banner for the conference, but they might be able to do that. They have a very realistic path to the Final Four even without defensive stopper Jaylen Clark. USC hammered UNC Asheville in the opening round of March Madness. The Bruins were suffocating on defense. It is clear that their focus, their energy, their clarity under head coach Mick Cronin is very high. This is a veteran group with proven defensive players who work and communicate well on the court. Jaime Jaquez is the Pac-12 Player of the Year, playing for Cronin, the Pac-12 Coach of the year, in a lineup which also includes Tyger Campbell and Adem Bona. The Bruins are a tough, nasty team to play, and they could advance to the Final Four in spite of a sometimes-clunky offense because they simply don't allow opposing offenses to do anything. We'll see if the Bruins can put the clamps on Northwestern in Sacramento.
Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Northwestern-UCLA March Madness odds.
March Madness Odds: Northwestern-UCLA Odds
Northwestern Wildcats: +7.5 (-110)
UCLA Bruins: -7.5 (-110)
Over: 126.5 (-110)
Under: 126.5 (-110)
How To Watch Northwestern vs. UCLA
TV: TNT
Stream: CBSsports.com, March Madness app, fuboTV
Time: 8:40 p.m. ET, 5:40 p.m. PT
*Watch Northwestern-UCLA LIVE with fuboTV (Click for free trial)*
Why Northwestern Could Cover the Spread
The Wildcats can capitalize on the fact that UCLA won't have Jaylen Clark in this game. UCLA was able to pound a weak team from a small conference in the first round, but Northwestern is much, much better than UNC Asheville. Northwestern has become a very strong defensive team this season under head coach Chris Collins and new (first-year) NU assistant coach Chris Lowery, who has made a world of difference for this team. Northwestern was able to lock down Boise State in an NCAA Tournament victory the other day. When Northwestern made its first NCAA Tournament appearance in 2017, it won its first-round game and then gave a high seed (Gonzaga) a very tough and close battle in the second round. We could see that exact same scenario repeat itself here.
Why UCLA Could Cover the Spread
Even with Jaylen Clark out, UCLA still has the defense and the resources needed to win in the NCAA Tournament. The Bruins have achieved a great rhythm on defense. It is easy to think of rhythm as something which only applies to offense, but UCLA has established and found a rhythm on defense. The Bruins are so locked in right now that they can really do a number on a Northwestern offense which will go through extended scoring droughts. Northwestern might want to make this game ugly, but UCLA and Mick Cronin are fine with playing games in the mud. They can win this game 60-50 or 65-52, which would certainly be enough to cover the spread.
Final Northwestern-UCLA Prediction & Pick
UCLA's defense is vicious, and Northwestern — playing in the Big Ten — has not seen anything like it this season. UCLA is going to shut down the Wildcats. The under is a play you can add here,
Final Northwestern-UCLA Prediction & Pick: UCLA -7.5, under 126.5
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