It’s rare to get a rematch of an early season game in the Sweet 16, but college basketball fans will be treated to just that. And if this game is anything like the earlier meeting, it will have all fans on the edge of their seats. The UCLA Bruins travelled to Lexington back in December and upended the then-No. 1 Kentucky Wildcats in a game that foresaw UCLA’s future. The Bruins were efficient on offense producing 97 points in the win.
This war on the floor will go down Friday, March 24, 2017, at 9:39 p.m. ET at the FedEx Forum. The game will be televised live on CBS. We'll have NCAA basketball odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game on the college basketball Friday schedule.
Odds at BookMaker.eu
UCLA Bruins -1
Kentucky Wildcats +1
Over/Under 169
The Bruins were unbeaten and ranked No. 11 when they visited Kentucky in early December, but they had played a light schedule leading up to that game and were 11-point dogs. We learned a lot about UCLA in that game. Like, they’re pretty good and can score a bushel of points. UCLA won 97-92 and the teams easily eclipsed the total, which closed at 177. The Bruins ended Kentucky’s 42-game home winning streak with that win and look to put a stop to the Wildcats current 13-game run, which is the longest of any team in the Tournament.
With three likely first round picks on their roster and going against overmatched opponents in the first two rounds, the Wildcats found themselves locked in a pair of tight battles. They beat Northern Kentucky 79-70 but failed to cover the 20-point spread, and followed with a three-point push with Wichita State in their 65-62 second round win. The Cats will need to play defense against the Bruins and they’ve been doing that, holding 10 of their past 12 opponents to 70 points or less with the under at 10-2 in that span.
Key Stat
UCLA dissected a good Cincinnati defense in its second round victory and proved that it could win against good teams that try to slow the game down. The Bruins lead the nation in scoring, field goal percentage, and are second in offensive efficiency with 1.24 points per possession. With Bryce Alford dropping threes, T.J. Leaf working inside and Lonzo Ball running the show, the Bruins have a formidable offense that’s difficult for even the best teams to defend.
The Bearcats executed their game plan. They wanted to keep the Bruins in the 70s or lower, but UCLA was once again efficient shooting 50 percent from the floor. Kentucky has great offensive talent as well and will have to run with Bruins, much like the earlier matchup. Whichever team defends the best will be the victor, there just won’t be much of it.
Last Meeting
It was a marquee early-season win for the Bruins as they invaded Lexington and beat the No. 1 ranked Wildcats 97-92 in early December, ending Kentucky’s 42-game home winning streak. And they did it with what has become the team’s trademark this season – offense. UCLA shot a blistering 53 percent from the field and made 10 of 23 triples to nearly hit the century mark against Coach Cal’s kids.
More impressive for UCLA is that Ball wasn’t much of a factor on the scoring sheet. Ball, who is a lottery pick in this year’s NBA draft, hit just 5 of 12 field goals and was 2 of 8 from three-point range for 14 points. But he impacted the game in other ways. His triple at the halftime buzzer gave the Bruins momentum for the second half, and he contributed seven assists and six rebounds.
Free College Basketball ATS Picks
This will be the most entertaining Sweet 16 matchup and will certainly have plenty of fireworks with all the talent on the floor. Kentucky has stepped it up defensively and will have to continue that style of play to get a win. But the Bruins have proven they can play with and beat teams that try and slow the tempo. They just knocked off Cincinnati by scoring 79 points against a team that allowed just over 60 per contest.
Calipari said after the December loss that he hoped his team learned a lesson. We’ll find out if they did. But the Bruins learned a lesson after that game as well. They learned that they have a great team and can score against any team in any environment. That win in Lexington was huge and will carry the Bruins to the Elite Eight with another exciting victory.
College Basketball Odds: UCLA 84, Kentucky 79
BookMaker.eu offers play-by-play betting odds for live sporting events every day! The user-friendly wagering interface on your smartphone provides an easy way to place bets on the go. Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute, so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker.eu!
