The No. 10 UCLA Bruins have some work to do if they’re to once again become a topic in the regular season Pac-12 championship discussion. Steve Alford’s squad will be presented an excellent opportunity to throw its hat back into the ring on Thursday night when it welcomes the No. 7 ranked Oregon Ducks into Tinseltown for the heavyweight’s second and final meeting of the regular season. Oregon stole one at the buzzer in these team’s late December meeting that kicked off conference play.
This war on the floor will go down Thursday, February 9, 2017, at 10 p.m. ET at the Pauley Pavilion. The game will be televised live on ESPN. We'll have NCAA basketball odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game on Thursday’s college basketball schedule.
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After failing to cover back-to-back games against Colorado and Arizona State, the Ducks let it be known that all is well in Eugene after Dana Altman’s squad took Arizona out behind the woodshed and served up a memorable beating that will have many penciling Oregon in as making a deep run in the upcoming NCAA Tournament. The triumph moved Dillon Brooks and his mates to 9-2 against the spread in its last 11 games, and they’ll be out to cover their fourth conference road tilt in five tries tonight.
As lucrative a side Oregon has been to back, it’s been just the opposite for the Bruins who just snapped a three-game coverless streak by demolishing the Huskies in Washington this past weekend. Before that, they failed to beat the linemakers against Arizona, USC and Washington State with the lone straight up win coming against the Cougars. The Bruins have been wretched as hosts against the spread going 1-3 overall and only winning and covering against ASU.
Player to Watch
Tyler Dorsey – You could literally pick any of the Ducks heading into this one as hot as the offense was against Arizona this past weekend. But it was the overall effort from Dorsey that really caught my eye. He drained 7 of 9 shots from beyond the arc with many of them falling in the first half allowing Oregon to take a 20 point lead with it into the break. When the long balls are falling for the Ducks, it makes them literally impossible to beat. Arizona learned that the hard way on Saturday with it forced to launch numerous 3-ball after 3-ball in hopes of getting back into it. They were unsuccessful, and the Ducks reeled in just about every loose defensive rebound. Should Dorsey catch fire again, it will really put UCLA behind the 8-ball.
Last Meeting
The Bruins looked primed and ready to win the first go round up a couple possessions heading into the final minute of play, but Dillon Brooks 3-ball with just .8 seconds left snatched an 89-87 victory from the jaws of defeat and sent the Ducks streaking towards eight straight Pac-12 wins. The Bruins actually dominated on the stat sheet shooting at a higher clip overall as well as from beyond the arc. It also won the rebounding battle 34-32 and out-blocked the Ducks 6-1.
What ended up costing them dearly however was 14 turnovers with a number being committed when it mattered most in the game’s late stages. The win moved Oregon to 3-0 straight up and against the spread in these rival’s last three meetings. The combined 176 points snapped a string of five straight under cashes.
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This is a huge game for UCLA. The last time it took to its own hardwood, it was handled easily by the Arizona Wildcats en route to falling 96-85 as 5.5 point favorites. After Oregon just embarrassed those same Wildcats, the Bruins know full well they have to take their game to the next level to even up the season rivalry with the Ducks.
With the Bruins outstating Oregon pretty much across the board in the first go round but still coming up on the short end of the scoreboard, you have to imagine it’s going to be way up for this rematch with the belief that it should have won up in Eugene. Remember, linemakers had Alford’s squad installed the favorites back on December 28. So long as it can curtail the turnover issues that cost it that game, Bryce Alford and his mates should find a way to protect its house and snap their losing streak to the Ducks.
College Basketball Odds: UCLA 85, Oregon 75
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