UCLA Bruins at Washington Huskies Betting Preview
Monday night features a Pac-12 showdown as the No. 12 UCLA Bruins (21-6, 13-5 in Pac-12) take on the Washington Huskies (14-13, 9-8 in Pac-12). The Huskies will host this one at the Alaska Airlines Arena, with tipoff scheduled for 11:00 pm ET.
These two teams met up back on February 19, with the Bruins winning easily at home, 76-50. Jaylen Clark and David Singleton combined for 47 points in the win. Terrell Brown led the Huskies in the loss with 13 points.
Since that game, the Bruins have won two of their last three. They dropped a game to Oregon (68-63), but they bounced back on Saturday with a 94-55 win over Oregon State.
After losing to UCLA, the Huskies split a home and away with Washington State. They lost on the road 78-70 but defeated Washington State by the exact score at home on Saturday.
The Bruins are the heavy favorites Monday night despite playing on the road. They are -580 to win, while the Huskies are +420. Washington is +10.5 (-114), and the over/under for total points is 139.5.
More Odds
UCLA currently has the 11th-best odds of winning the National Championship at +2800.
By The Numbers
The Bruins have had the stronger of the two offenses this season. They rank 33rd in scoring, averaging 76.7 points per game (70.9 on the road). The Huskies rank 178th, averaging 70.2 points per game.
Defensively, it is again UCLA with the edge. They rank 30th in scoring defense as they are allowing opponents an average of just 64.1 points per game. Washington ranks 256th, allowing 72.9 points per game to opponents (68.4 at home).
Bruins Look To Sweep Season Series
After demolishing the Huskies back on the 19th, the Bruins would love nothing more than to sweep the season series and beat Washington on the road Monday. The one thing they have to be careful of, though, is to not overlook the Huskies ahead of their regular-season finale against No. 16 USC next Saturday.
Leading the way for the Bruins is junior guard Johnny Juzang. This season, he is averaging 17 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 1.8 assists per game.
UCLA has three others averaging double digits in Jaime Jaquez Jr (12.2 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 1.2 steals), Tyger Campbell (12 points, 2.6 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 1.2 steals), and Jules Bernard (12 points, 4.7 rebounds).
Washington Trying To Stay Above .500
At 14-13 overall and 9-8 in the conference, this season has been the epitome of mediocre for head coach Mike Hopkins and the Washington Huskies. On Monday, they will try to stay above .500 as they host the No. 12 Bruins.
Hopkins’ offense is powered by senior guard Terrell Brown Jr. This season; he is averaging 21.5 points on 44.4% shooting. Brown is also adding 4.2 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 2.3 steals per game.
The only other player averaging double digits is senior forward Emmitt Matthews Jr. He is averaging 11.4 points and five rebounds per game. Other contributors include Jamal Bey (8.8 points, four rebounds, 1.3 steals), PJ Fuller (8.4 points), and Daejon Davis (7.8 points, 3.1 rebounds, 2.9 assists).
Take UCLA To Win And Cover
While it is always intimidating to bet the spread when it exceeds 10 points, this might be a prime opportunity to do so. UCLA is an impressive 8-4-1 when favored by 10.5 points or more.
On top of that, the Bruins are just far superior to the Huskies on both ends of the floor. While it might not be the 26-point route, it was just a little over a week ago; this is still a game that UCLA should win easily.
Take the Bruins to both win and cover the 10.5-point spread.
