Arizona State vs. UCLA prediction and odds for Thursday, March 2 (Back Bruins in No. 1 seed push)

UCLA is hell bent on becoming a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament and they are in good shape to do just that considering they have already locked up the PAC-12 regular season title, thanks to Arizona State.

The Sun Devils knocked off rival (and PAC-12 second place) Arizona over the weekend with a wild buzzer beating heave and now head to Los Angeles to face the vaunted Bruins. ASU is now firmly on the bubble and a win on the road once again against a top five team in the country could lock their spot in the field of 68.

Easier said then done, though, as Arizona State is a double digit dog in this Thursday night matchup. Can they give bettors a cover? Let’s find out:

Arizona State vs. UCLA odds, spread and total

Arizona State vs. UCLA prediction and pick

Arizona State held up nicely against UCLA in Tempe in January despite the lopsided score, the Sun Devils actually led in the final six minutes before losing by 12 and not covering the five point spread.

However, this might be a tough matchup for ASU against the Bruins. UCLA is top five in defending at the rim this season and does a great job of forcing teams off the three-point line and into difficult shots with their length along the perimeter.

The Sun Devils are a middling PAC-12 offense, the worst three-point shooting team in league play and generate 54% of their points on two’s which checks in third in the conference, but UCLA’s elite interior defense will make life hard for their offense.

While ASU has an elite rim defense as well, second in at rim defense, the team’s awful on the defensive glass (ninth in PAC-12 defensive rebounding rate) and UCLA is the best in the league in terms of generating second chances. Further, the Sun Devils just closed as 12.5-point underdogs to Arizona, who is a step below UCLA this season.

While the Sun Devils deserve an upgrade for knocking off Arizona on the road, I think it’s a bit overstated by making them 11.5 on the road against a Bruins team that can negate the team’s advantage in defending at the rim with their ability to crash the glass and get more shots up.

Give me UCLA at home to win convincingly.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.