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Just three weeks into the Pac-12 season, every team has at least one loss and the race appears to be wide open. The Oregon Ducks have gotten off to slow start and certainly can’t afford to lose many more games if they want to stay close to Arizona. They’ve had success recently against the UCLA Bruins, winning three straight in Eugene and they look to extend that streak on Saturday night. UCLA is looking to rebound after what Steve Alford called his team’s poorest outing all season in a loss last week to Colorado.
This war on the floor will go down Saturday, January 20, 2018, at 10:15 p.m. ET at Matthew Knight Arena. The game will be televised live on ESPN. We'll have NCAA basketball odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game on the college basketball Saturday schedule.
Opening College Basketball Odds at BookMaker.eu
The Bruins haven’t travelled much all season and the trip to Oregon this week is their first out of California in over a month. They did split games against the Nor Cal schools two weeks ago and are just 4-3 SU and 3-4 ATS in seven road and neutral site games. They’re headed to a place that’s given them nightmares over the past three years with the Ducks claiming victory in those three meetings while covering the spread each time.
While it’s been a different type of season for the Ducks, they return home after an encouraging trip last week. Oregon knocked off No. 11 Arizona State and lost a hard-fought battle to No. 17 Arizona covering the spread in both games. The Ducks hope to use that as motivation after starting Pac-12 play with two losses in the first three tilts, including a poor effort against rival Oregon State when they lost by 12 as a 2.5-point favorite.
Key Stat
You don’t want to get into a free throw shooting contest with Oregon and the typical close games between these two suggest that might be what happens. The last three meetings between them have been decided by a combined 13 points with the Ducks coming out on top twice, though UCLA won the last meeting.
Oregon hit all four free throws in the final 30 seconds of its win at Arizona State last week and leads the Pac-12 with a 78.1 percent success rate from the stripe as a team. Elijah Brown has missed only two freebies all season and four of the regular five starters all connect on over 80 percent. The only problem is the Ducks don’t get to the line that often. They’re next to last in the league in free throws attempted.
Player to Watch
It’s taken three years, but Thomas Welsh has become a force in the Bruins lineup. The senior is enjoying his finest campaign in a UCLA uniform and his play hasn’t gone unnoticed. “That’s somebody that we always want to play through more,” coach Steve Alford said after Welsh scored 20 points, including 10 in a row at one point in a loss to Colorado.
The outing against the Buffs wasn’t atypical for the 7-footer either. While his teammates were struggling from the floor, Welsh hit 9 of 10 shots and dropped a pair of triples in three attempts. Welsh had attempted just one three-pointer in his first three seasons but he’s gone 21 of 49 from beyond the arc and is one of two players in the league to average a double-double in points and rebounds.
Free College Basketball ATS Picks
To be successful in the Pac-12 teams need to win at home. The Ducks have already lost once and got off to a rocky start in league play as they look to find a rhythm. They’re hoping a good showing in the desert is the spark to turn their season around because they can’t afford to drop too many more games. And they could have an edge on the Bruins in the depth department. UCLA will be without Ikenna Okwarabizie, leaving the bench woefully thin and the Ducks could just run them off the floor.
College Basketball Odds: Oregon 74, UCLA 67
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