A rivalry will be renewed on Sunday night when the No. 5 Oregon Ducks play the No.4 seed, the Arizona Wildcats, at 9:40 p.m. ET. This was the first regular season since 1977 that Arizona and Oregon didn’t play each other. That is because Oregon moved to the Big Ten while Arziona is in the Big 12 conference.
The Wildcats lead the all-time series 55-38 and have won three of the last four matchups. Here is my favorite pick for Saturday’s matchup between Arizona and Oregon. The Ducks are 9-6 in their previous 15 games against the Wildcats.
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Arizona vs. Oregon (9:40 p.m. ET)
Arizona had an incredible offensive performance against Akron, scoring 93 points while only allowing 65. Five Wildcats totaled 10-plus points. Jaden Bradley led the way, scoring 19 points and grabbing six rebounds on 8-13 shooting from the field. Arizona isn’t known to be a great three-point shooting team, but finished 48 percent against the Zips.
Oregon also dominated their opponent in their first-round matchup. The Ducks beat the Liberty Flames 81-52 on Friday. Oregon also shot over 40 percent from deep. The Ducks’ backcourt duo of Jackson Shelstad and Keeshawn Barthelemy combined for 27 points, while center Nate Bittle had a double-double of 14 points and 10 boards.
Even though Oregon had a good offensive performance on Friday, they are just too inconsistent in scoring the ball. Arizona averages five more points per game while being the more efficient shooting team from the field, free-throw line, and on three-pointers. The Wildcats proved they can convincingly win a game when Caleb Love has a down game and continues to grow as a unit.
If Tobe Awoka and Henri Veesaar can maintain Bittle, the Wildcats should be able to advance to their third Sweet Sixteen in the previous four seasons. Arizona is a -3.5 on DraftKings Sportsbook in this matchup against Oregon. The Wildcats have won each game this season by four or more points.
College Basketball Pick: Arizona -3.5
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