UCLA Bruins (23-4) vs. Utah Runnin' Utes (17-11)
February 23, 2023 11:00 pm EDT
The Line: Utah Runnin' Utes +6 / UCLA Bruins -6 ; Over/Under: 131.5
(Get latest betting odds)
The UCLA Bruins and the Utah Utes meet Thursday in college basketball action from Jon M. Huntsman Center. UCLA is currently 23-4 on the year so far. The Bruins beat California in their last matchup. As for Utah, they’re sitting at 17-11 after a loss to Arizona State on Saturday. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.
UCLA Bruins
UCLA managed a 17-3 record through their first 20 games this year. After a loss to USC, the Bruins have since recorded six straight wins over Washington, Washington State, Oregon State, Oregon, Stanford and California in succession.
On Saturday versus California, UCLA didn’t have too much trouble. The Bruins were up 38-15 after one half and scored another 40 points on the way to a 78-43 victory. Jaime Jaquez put up 20 points with eight rebounds in the win.
Utah Utes
Over on the Utes’ side, they were 13-7 after 20 games this season. The Utes have gone 4-4 over the last eight with wins over Washington, Oregon State, California and Colorado. The losses came to Oregon, Stanford, Arizona and Arizona State in that time.
Matched up against Arizona State on Saturday, the Utes held a slim 26-25 edge going into the second half. Utah was outscored 42-33 from there however and lost 67-59. Branden Carlson, Marco Anthony and Lazar Stefanovic each scored 12 points.
ANDREW’S FREE PICK
I’ll stick with UCLA here. The Bruins are looking good over this six-game win streak, and they’ve hit 70 or more points in five of those victories. UCLA is doing well defensively on the other side as well with 64 or fewer points allowed in all six of those outings. As for Utah, they took a 68-49 loss the last time these teams met up back on January 12 at Pauley Pavilion. I don’t see this rematch going a whole lot differently; the Bruins should be in total control even on the road.
