Long Beach State vs UC-Santa Barbara 3/11/22 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds

The UC Santa Barbara Gauchos and Long Beach State 49ers meet Friday in the college basketball Big West Semifinal at the Dollar Loan Center. The UC Santa Barbara Gauchos look to build on their six-game winning streak. The Long Beach State 49ers look to build on their three-game winning streak.

The UC Santa Barbara Gauchos are averaging 74 points on 49.5 percent shooting and allowing 65.6 points on 42 percent shooting. Amadou Sow is averaging 15.8 points and 8.2 rebounds, while Ajay Mitchell is averaging 11.8 points and 2.1 rebounds. Miles Norris is the third double-digit scorer and Ajare Sanni is grabbing 2.7 rebounds. The UC Santa Barbara Gauchos are shooting 32.5 percent from beyond the arc and 70.7 percent from the free throw line. The UC Santa Barbara Gauchos are allowing 31.8 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 32.8 rebounds per game.

The Long Beach State 49ers are averaging 74.3 points on 43.8 percent shooting and allowing 73.1 points on 43.8 percent shooting. Joel Murray is averaging 16.2 points and 2.9 rebounds, while Colin Slater is averaging 13.9 points and 2.9 rebounds. Jadon Jones is the third double-digit scorer and Joe Hampton is grabbing 3.2 rebounds. The Long Beach State 49ers are shooting 35 percent from beyond the arc and 72.2 percent from the free throw line. The Long Beach State 49ers are allowing 33.9 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 32.5 rebounds per game.

The Gauchos are 8-2 ATS in their last 10 Friday games and 4-1-1 ATS in their last 6 games overall. The Beach are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 Friday games and 17-4 ATS in their last 21 games overall. The under is 36-15 in Gauchos last 51 neutral site games.

You can make a case for either side here, as they’re both playing great ball. However, the UC-Santa Barbara Gauchos are playing their best ball of the season right now, and they have a clear edge on the offensive side. UC-Santa Barbara is shooting 51.6 percent from the field in its last five games, and it wins in the favorite role by an average of 9.6 points. I have to lean toward the Gauchos here.