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It's time to continue our College Basketball odds series with a UC San Diego-Santa Barbara prediction and pick. Find out how to watch UC San Diego-Santa Barbara.
This is one of multiple interesting Thursday night college basketball games on the West Coast. It involves the UC San Diego Tritons, not the San Diego Toreros, in case you were wondering. UC San Diego and Santa Barbara look like evenly-matched teams. The betting odds posted below reflect that, at least in terms of perception. These two teams have collected some solid nonconference wins. They aren't just winning cupcake games. They are testing themselves against programs which, if not very good right now, have been good in recent years. UC San Diego has already defeated Toledo, James Madison, and La Salle. Toledo and JMU have been good and successful programs in recent seasons, while La Salle has started this season well and looks like a team which could be formidable as the campaign unfolds.
Santa Barbara already has a few wins tucked away against the Mountain West Conference. The Gauchos have defeated San Jose State and Fresno State — not bad for a Big West Conference team. These teams have a combined 12-3 record and will now be able to test how they stand against each other in a head-to-head clash. This is a good measuring-stick game for the two schools and their coaching staffs one month into the season. Win or lose, these teams will gather a lot of useful and revealing information which will enable them to prepare and adjust accordingly for the road ahead in college basketball.
Here are the UC San Diego-Santa Barbara College Basketball Odds, courtesy of FanDuel
College Basketball Odds: UC San Diego-Santa Barbara Odds
UC San Diego: +2.5 (-112)
Moneyline: +118
Santa Barbara: -2.5 (-108)
Moneyline: -142
Over: 137.5 (-110)
Under: 137.5 (-110)
How to Watch UC San Diego vs Santa Barbara
Time: 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT
TV: ESPN Plus
Stream: fuboTV (Get Access | Save $30)
Why UC San Diego Will Cover The Spread/Win
UC San Diego has one of the better scorers in the country. Tyler McGhie is averaging 18.5 points per game and is shooting just over 46 percent from the field. He has a willingness to take big shots and is able to make many of them. This is the big-dog scorer who can rise above the rest of the crowd in a close game and take over when his team needs him to be great. That's an important asset to have in a game Vegas expects to be very tight. UCSD has already beaten some prominent mid-major opponents such as Toledo and James Madison. A team which can do that can certainly go into Santa Barbara and win against a good but hardly great opponent.
Why Santa Barbara Will Cover The Spread/Win
The spread is only 2.5 points, and Santa Barbara is playing at home after having defeated multiple Mountain West Conference teams earlier in the season. We don't know how high UCSB's ceiling is, but we know this team's floor is fairly high, given its ability to beat teams from stronger conferences.
One added detail worth pointing out: UC San Diego has played just one game over the past 11 days, and that was a cupcake game. Santa Barbara has played more games in that span and might be just a little sharper, enough to make a difference.
Final UC San Diego-Santa Barbara Prediction & Pick
The lean is to Santa Barbara, but we see this as a matchup of equals. You don't have to bet on this game.
Final UC San Diego-Santa Barbara Prediction & Pick: Santa Barbara -2.5
