Cal Poly vs UC-Santa Barbara 1/7/23 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds

The UC Santa Barbara Gauchos and the Cal Poly Mustangs meet Saturday in college basketball action from Mott Athletic Center. UC Santa Barbara enters this game at 11-2 overall. The Gauchos beat UC San Diego in their last game. As for Cal Poly, they’re fresh off a Thursday game versus CSU Bakersfield. In that one the Mustangs lost by 10 points. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.

UC Santa Barbara posted a solid 8-2 run through their first 10 games, losing to only Northern Arizona and Duquesne in that time. The Gauchos have kept it going in their last trio with wins over Appalachian State, CSU Fullerton and UC San Diego. 

In the UC San Diego matchup back on December 31, the Gauchos trailed by three points going into the second half. UC Santa Barbara hit a 42-18 run from there and won 82-61. Ajay Mitchell was tops in scoring with 23 points. 

Over on the Cal Poly side, they were 5-5 in their first 10 games with wins over Bethesda, Idaho, Pacific, Cal Baptist and Portland State. The Mustangs went 2-2 in their next four with wins over SDCC and CSU Northridge. 

On Thursday versus CSU Bakersfield, the Mustangs were down 29-16 after one half. Cal Poly got a little closer in the second but ended up with a 61-51 defeat. Kobe Sanders was the only team player in double-figures with 14 points and five boards. 

PICK: I’m probably sticking with UC Santa Barbara. It’s been a pretty nice year for the Gauchos so far, and they’re playing well during this seven-game win streak. UC Santa Barbara has scored 66 or more points in six of those seven games, and they’ve held opponents to 61 or fewer points in three straight outings. If UC Santa Barbara gets off to a good start (unlike the UC San Diego game last weekend) I think they’ll be fine cover-wise here.