Cal State-Bakersfield vs UC Irvine 3/5/22 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds

The UC Irvine Anteaters will travel to the Icardo Center to take on the CSU Bakersfield Roadrunners this Saturday afternoon in College Basketball action.

The UC Irvine Anteaters dropped to 14-9 on the season after being defeated by the Cal Poly Mustangs, 65-54, this past Thursday. UC Irvine trailed by a 32-25 margin at halftime and could not fight back after a 9-0 Mustangs run gave Cal Poly a 63-47 lead with 3:32 left in regulation. UC Irvine shot 38.3% from the field & 29.4% from beyond the arc while allowing Cal Poly to shoot 38.2% from the field & 31.6% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Anteaters was Dawson Baker who had 18 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist, & 1 steal.

On the season, UC Irvine is averaging 66.1 ppg on 44.3% shooting from the field. The Anteaters are averaging 4.9 three-pointers per game on 32.0% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, UC Irvine has been led by Collin Welp (14.0 ppg, 6.6 rpg, 1.7 apg), Dawson Baker (11.1 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 1.1 apg), Justin Hohn (7.7 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 2.0 apg, 1.0 spg), & DJ Davis (7.5 ppg, 1.7 rpg, 1.7 apg).

Defensviely, UC Irvine is holding their opponents to an average of 59.5 ppg on 38.4% shooting from the field. The Anteaters have a rebound margin of 4.7 and a turnover margin of -1.9.

The CSU Bakersfield Roadrunners lost their 2^nd straight game and dropped to 7-17 on the season after being defeated by the UC San Diego Tritons, 72-70, this past Thursday. CSU Bakersfield fought back from a 70-63 deficit with just 2:58 left in regulation to tie the game at 70-all, however, the Tritons were able to secure the victory after Bryce Pope hit a game-winning jumper for UC San Diego with just :01 second left in regulation. CSU Bakersfield shot 43.3% from the field & 30.8% from beyond the arc while allowing UC San Diego to shoot 50.0% from the field & 47.6% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Roadrunners was Justin McCall who had 26 points, 7 rebounds, & 1 assist.

On the season, CSU Bakersfield is averaging 64.5 ppg on 41.8% shooting from the field. The Roadrunners are averaging 3.9 three-pointers per game on 28.1% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, CSU Bakersfield has been led by Justin McCall (11.0 ppg, 4.5 rpg), Kaleb Higgins (9.5 ppg, 1.7 rpg, 2.4 apg, 1.0 spg), Justin Edler-Davis (9.0 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 1.0 spg), & Shawn Stith (7.3 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 1.1 apg).

Defensively, CSU Bakersfield is allowing their opponents to average 67.3 ppg on 44.4% shooting from the field. The Roadrunners have a rebound margin of 3.0 and a turnover margin of 2.2.

The Anteaters are 4-7-1 ATS in their last 12 road games & 2-6 ATS in their last 8 March games. The Roadrunners are 1-9 ATS in their last 10 games & 1-6 ATS in their last 7 games playing as an underdog.

UC Irvine has been led by their defense which ranks 9^th in scoring offense & 8^th in defensive FG%, however, the Anteaters have struggled on the road this season, posting just a 5-7 record and have had issues on the offensive end, ranking 294^th in scoring offense & 342^nd in three-pointers made per game. CSU Bakersfield has also been led by their defense this season, ranking 120^th in scoring defense, 90^th in rebound margin, & 58^th in turnover margin and between the fact that the Roadrunners gave UC Irvine all they could handle in a 57-52 loss earlier this season on the road, I think CSU Bakersfield does enough with the points to get us a cover. Good Luck!