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The No. 7 seed Northwestern Wildcats (22-11) head into their second round NCAA Tournament matchup against the No. 2 seed UCLA Bruins (30-5) on Saturday at 8:40 PM. The winner will move on to the Sweet 16 in the West Region bracket.
The Bruins are currently healthy 7.5-point favorites over the Wildcats. A 126.5-point over/under has been set for the game.
UCLA vs. Northwestern Odds
Point Spread for UCLA vs. Northwestern
The spread for this matchup is set at 7.5 points, with bookmakers listing UCLA as the favorite.
UCLA vs. Northwestern Moneyline
As for the moneyline, UCLA has -350 odds to pick up the win, while Northwestern is listed at +277 to claim victory.
Over/Under
Finally, the over/under for the game is set at 126.5 points.
Game Time and How to Watch
- Game Day: Saturday, March 18, 2023
- Game Time: 8:40 PM ET
- TV Channel: TNT
- Location: Sacramento, California
- Arena: Golden 1 Center
UCLA vs. Northwestern Betting Trends
UCLA has 20 wins against the spread in 35 games this season. The Bruins have won in 29, or 93.5%, of the 31 contests they have been named as odds-on favorites in this year. UCLA’s games this year have hit the over 51.5% of the time (17 out of 33 games with a set point total).
Northwestern has 20 wins against the spread in 33 games this season. The Wildcats have won nine of the 16 games they were the moneyline underdog this season (56.2%). Northwestern has hit the over 39.4% of the time this season (13 of 33 games with a set point total).
UCLA vs. Northwestern Key Players to Watch
UCLA
Jaime Jaquez Jr. leads the Bruins with 17.3 points per game and 8.1 rebounds, while also putting up 2.3 assists. Tyger Campbell leads the Bruins at 4.8 assists per contest, while also posting 2.6 rebounds and 13.4 points. Jaylen Clark averages 13 points, 6 rebounds and 1.9 assists per contest, shooting 47.9% from the field. Adem Bona puts up 7.8 points, 5.4 rebounds and 0.8 assists per contest. Defensively, he puts up 0.6 steals and 1.7 blocked shots.
Northwestern
Chase Audige gets the Wildcats 14 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.8 assists per contest. He also puts up 2.4 steals (10th in the nation) and 0.6 blocked shots. Ty Berry is averaging 8.6 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.1 assists per contest, making 34.8% of his shots from the field and 29.5% from beyond the arc, with 1.5 triples per contest. Matthew Nicholson is averaging a team-leading 5.3 rebounds per game. And he is contributing 6 points and 1.2 assists, making 59% of his shots from the floor.
What you need to know about the UCLA Bruins
The Bruins have been carried by their defense, as they rank sixth-best in college basketball by surrendering only 60.1 points per game. They rank 115th in college basketball in points scored (74.3 per contest). This year, UCLA is grabbing 32.6 rebounds per game (119th-ranked in college basketball) and allowing 28.9 rebounds per contest (53rd-ranked).
UCLA is draining 6.1 treys per game (311th-ranked in college basketball) this season, while putting up a 34.6% three-point percentage (158th-ranked). So far this year, the Bruins are allowing 6.5 three-pointers per game (83rd-ranked in college basketball) and are allowing opposing teams to shoot 31.1% (40th-ranked) from downtown.
The Bruins have a 6-3-1 record against the spread while going 9-1 overall in their last 10 games. Six of UCLA’s past 10 games have gone over the total. On offense, UCLA has increased its output slightly over its last 10 games, scoring 75 points per contest over that span as opposed to the 74.3 it has racked up over the course of this year. UCLA has been more porous on the defensive side of the ball as of late, giving up 60.7 points per game over its past 10 contests compared to the 60.1 points per game its opponents average in the 2022-23 season.
What you need to know about the Northwestern Wildcats
On offense, the Wildcats are the 274th-ranked squad in the country (67.9 points per game). Defensively, they are 19th-best (62.6 points allowed per game). At 32.1 rebounds per game and 32 rebounds allowed, Northwestern is 157th and 242nd in college basketball, respectively.
In 2022-23, Northwestern is 134th in the country in 3-point makes (7.7 per game) and 286th in 3-point percentage (32.2%). The Wildcats are 217th in the country in 3-pointers conceded (7.5 per game) and 169th in 3-point percentage defensively (33.6%).
The Wildcats have a 7-3 record against the spread while going 6-4 overall over their last 10 contests. Northwestern has hit the over in three of its past 10 outings. Northwestern has performed worse offensively over its past 10 games, compiling 66.8 points per contest, 1.1 fewer points its than season average of 67.9. The Wildcats have played worse defensively over their last 10 games, surrendering 63.9 points per contest, 1.3 more points their than season average of 62.6.
UCLA vs. Northwestern Prediction & Pick
Our prediction to win this game is UCLA, and we project that UCLA will cover the spread (UCLA -7.5). Finally, we see the scoring in this one going over the posted total of 126.5 points.
How to bet UCLA vs. Northwestern
You can bet on UCLA vs. Northwestern at every legal online sportsbook. For more college basketball odds, including moneylines, spreads, over/under totals, check out the latest NCAA lines as well as our guide to the best college basketball betting sites.
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