UCLA Bruins NCAA Basketball Betting
There were plenty of major disappointments in college basketball this year, many of them by icon name brands of the sport. But perhaps there was no greater disappointment than the UCLA Bruins. UCLA was wildly inconsistent on the court and at the betting window. There were peaks of hope and valleys of despair. Following a 2021 Final Four, head coach Mick Cronin produced a pair of Sweet Sixteen seasons. However, the Bruins were never ranked this year, and we saw why. They were not the same quality of a team in 2023-24. UCLA’s poor betting value was a source of frustration to gamblers all year.
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UCLA Bruins Team Review
Overall, the UCLA Bruins are 15-16 straight up, 14-16-1 against the spread, and 13-18 over/under the total. UCLA has national metrics of 336th for scoring offense, 323rd for field goal percentage, 258th for 3-point field goal percentage, 113th for free throw percentage, and 288th for offensive rebounding. While defensively, UCLA is 22nd for scoring defense, 88th for field goal percentage permitted, 190th for 3-point field goal percentage allowed, and 55th for defensive rebounding.
Late on, UCLA has covered three of its previous four games. UCLA has gone over the total in four of its last six outings. First among UCLA scorers is Dylan Andrews with 12.9 points per game. F Adem Bona averages 12.4 points and 5.9 rebounds per contest. At the same time, G Lazar Stefanovic brings 11.5 points and 6.1 rebounds per matchup.
UCLA lost 68-66 to the Oregon Ducks in the Pac-12 Tournament to conclude its season. N'Faly Dante's basket and free throws by Jermaine Couisnard and Jackson Shelstad in the final 36 seconds of Thursday's Pac-12 tournament quarterfinal helped fourth-seeded Oregon survive a UCLA comeback attempt. UCLA had one last chance to tie or win the game with 4.4 seconds left, but Dylan Andrews drove to the basket only to have his shot bounce off the rim at the buzzer.
Dante finished with 22 points to lead Oregon, which advanced to the semifinals on Friday to play the tournament's top seed, Arizona. Andrews led the fifth-seeded Bruins with 24 points.
Dante dropped in a hook shot that bounced high off the rim and went through the net with 35.1 seconds to play for a 65-62 Oregon lead, but Andrews responded with a jumper with 11.1 seconds to go.
Couisnard, who left the game briefly with a shoulder injury, made two free throws after that, and Shelstad, a freshman in his first conference tournament game, made one of two free throws after Andrews knocked down two at the other end.
On the Mount Rushmore of college basketball programs resides the UCLA Bruins. And rightfully so. UCLA has 11 national championships in its history, with 19 Final Fours. It is a record that any major college basketball program would be envious of. Yet, a deeper dive is required. Almost all of the UCLA basketball glory belongs to one man. Head coach John Wooden led UCLA to ten of their 11 national titles and 12 of their 19 Final Fours. And UCLA coaches that followed can’t possibly escape his ghost of glory.
In 2018-19, UCLA finished 17-16 after head coach Steve Alford was fired in the middle of the season. The Bruins, representing a proud brand in college hoops history, were irrelevant. Enter Mick Cronin from Cincinnati, and his impact immediately put the program back on track to the top of the Pac-12 and the country.
Momentum took hold in March 2021 with a wild run to the Final Four, followed up last season with a second consecutive appearance in the Sweet 16. UCLA basketball was thought to be here to stay on the national map. The job that Mick Cronin has done in Westwood can’t be overstated. And there were no signs of slowing down until this season, which was a major step back.
Latest NCAA Tournament Results
| YEAR |
RESULT |
| 2023 |
Lost Sweet Sixteen vs. (9) Gonzaga 76–79 |
| 2022 |
Lost Sweet Sixteen vs. (8) North Carolina, 66–73 |
| 2021 |
Lost Final Four vs. (1) Gonzaga, 90–93 (OT) |
| 2018 |
Lost First Four vs. (11) St. Bonaventure, 58–65 |
| 2017 |
Lost Sweet Sixteen vs. (5) Kentucky, 75–86 |
| 2015 |
Lost Sweet Sixteen vs. (7) Gonzaga, 62–74 |
2023-2024 NCAA Basketball Top Teams
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