MSU BASKETBALL ON UCLA -Foresight, preview, how to see, betting line

On By Littum

• What: Michigan State in UCLA

• When: 22:00 (one) Tuesday

• Where: Pauley Pavilion, Los Angeles

• TV/Radio: Streaming on Peacock/Spartan Sports Network Radio, including WJIM 1240-AAM and WMMQ 94.9-FM; Siriusxm Ch. 83 (MSU Broadcast), 383 (USC Broadcast)

• Registrations/locations: MSU is 18-3 overall, 9-1 in the Big Ten and ranked No. 9 in both the Coaches vote and in the Associated Press vote, and is No. 17 per year. College Basketball Analytics Site Kenpom.com and No. 20 in NCAA’s net location. UCLA is 16-6 overall, 7-4 in the Big Ten and not ranked in the polls. Bruins is No. 28 National, per. Kenpom and the net.

• Betting line: UCLA -2.5

• Coaches: Michigan State -Tom Izzo is 725-298 in its 30th season as the head coach, all with the Spartans. UCLA – Mick Cronin is 496-230 in 22 seasons as the main coach, including 131-59 in six seasons with Bruins. Before that, he coached in Cincinnati for 13 seasons after three seasons in Murray State.

• Series: UCLA leads 7-4 all the time, where he last wins an NCAA tournament play-in match against the Spartans in Overtime in 2021 on Bruins’ Road to Final Four. MSU won the two meetings before that -at Maui Invitational in Thanksgiving Weekend in 2019 and in Las Vegas at Thanksgiving weekend in 2018. Before that the teams also met in the first round of the NCAA tournament in 2011, with Bruins hanging on wind 78- 76. This is their first meeting since UCLA joined the Big Ten.

Projected lineups

MSU

C (10) Szymon Zapala (7-0) 5.5

F (0) Jaxon Kohler (6-9) 7.3

G (3) Jaden Akins (6-4) 13.5

G (5) three holloman (6-2) 8.2

Pg (1) Jeremy fears Jr. (6-2) 7.8

UCLA

C (34) Tyler Bilodeau (6-9) 14.0

F (3) Eric Dailey (6-7) 12.4

F (0) Kobe Johnson (6-6) 8.0

G (55) Skyy Clark (6-3) 7.1

G (2) Dylan Andrews (6-2) 8.0

• MSU update: The Spartans come from their first loss since November, a 70-64 defeat at the USC on Saturday, which ended a 13-match winning row and gave them a stain on their former perfect Big Ten record. At. 9-1 is MSU a game up on Purdue (9-2) and Michigan (8-2) in the loss column. Tom Izzo remains a win away from tying Bob Knights Big Ten -Winning record. After Tuesday night’s game at UCLA, MSU hosts Oregon on Saturday at noon and then Indiana next Tuesday night. The Spartans struggled to shoot against the USC, both inside and outside the 3-point arch, where they made 5 out of 15 trials (33%). Their 3-point shooting has been spotted all season, and although it picked up early in the Big Ten game, MSU has not made more than 33% of its 3s tried in a single game since the beginning of January, except for Northwestern when the Spartans tried only eight and made four.

• UCLA update: Bruins looked like an underprestiation, bad Big Ti Basketball team through the first half of January, lost four straight – in Nebraska, to Michigan at home in 19, in Maryland before 18 and on Rutgers – while coach Mick Cronin apparently lost his mind and lost his mind and lost His mind and lost his mind and lost his mind and lost his mind and lost his mind and lost his mind and lost his mind and lost his mind and /or patience at his press conferences. But maybe Cronin was on something because UCLA has won five ever since-with 22 over Iowa, against Wisconsin, in Washington and USC, and Thursday, a 26-point demolition of Oregon. Bruins has improved their free kick and 3-point shooting in this latest stretch. They have also started removing their opponents, as they did not do early last month. The leading goal scorer Tyler Bilodeau, who missed most of two of UCLA’s five straight victories with an ankle injury, returned to Thursday’s shellacking of the ducks.

• Matchup -Analysis: Bruins right now playing as well as anyone in the Big Ten. Forward Eric Dailey will be a tough task for MSU’s Power Forwards and maybe a better fit for Coen Carr. Dailey is skilled and can score from the block or shoot from deep. He and UCLA, starting Big Man Tyler Bilodeau, are both 40% 3-point shooters. Their ability to stretch the floor helps Bruins’ guards and wings have room to get downhill. Cronin’s best teams always have some degree of defensive identity. Bruins’ transitional defense is again a strength, although they are not a big edge protection team this season. However, they can get big when 7-3 Spaniard Aday Mara is in the game. Recently, there has also been a gravel for this team, partly spurred by the well -traveled guard Skyy Clark and Wing Kobe Johnson, who UCLA spoke from the USC after last season.

• Prediction: UCLA is the warmer team right now, though MSU is 9-1 in the Big Ten. However, I think MSU will respond after Saturday’s Ho-Hum performance and slow start to the USC. And when MSU comes out of the gate of intensity and determination – as against North Carolina or on Northwestern, for example – it is noticeable and the spartans are a lot to handle. This should be a great game and probably a physical game. I hope the judges let them play.

• Make it: UCLA 74, MSU 71

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– Graham Couch

Contact Graham Couch at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @Graham_couch and Bluesky @Grahamcouch.