UCLA vs. Oregon College Basketball prediction, preview
Nothing seems to be going the Ducks’ way lately, and a matchup against the Bruins on Wednesday night isn’t going to help things get any better. Since defeating Maryland in its Big Ten opener, Oregon has lost six games in a row, with the last five all by double digits — an average loss of 17.2 points per game during that span.
As the underdog this season, the Ducks are 0-9 outright, going 2-7 ATS in those games with a -13.6 points per game margin. Even on its home floor, Oregon is just 4-7 ATS this season, including 0-3 ATS as a home underdog (average loss by 10.3 PPG). Unfortunately for Oregon, a big piece of its downfall has been health. During this losing streak, the Ducks lost their top two players — veteran guard Jackson Shelstad (15.6 PPG and 4.9 APG) and senior big man Nate Bittle (16.3 PPG and 6.7 RPG). While still well coached by Dana Altman, the talent to compete in the Big Ten just hasn’t been there.
UCLA is off consecutive wins at home, including a win over Purdue which could help save its season and build some momentum. While the Bruins haven’t been great on the road this season, many of those games have been long road trips out east due to how the conference is constructed. UCLA did win a true road game at Washington earlier in the season, which is a much more comparable trip — the same Huskies team that just knocked off the Ducks by 15 points in their last game.
UCLA has been strong in the favorite role this season, going 13-1 in those games, including 2-0 as the road favorite. Oregon’s offense seems to be getting worse by the game, and I just don’t think they’ll be able to keep up in this one with the injuries to key players. Give me UCLA to pull this one out on the road with margin.
