Utah State vs UCLA: College Basketball Picks For March 20, 2025

Utah State and UCLA clash in a first round NCAA Tournament game on Thursday night in college basketball. Get college basketball picks for today around Utah State vs UCLA battling in a NCAA Tournament matchup in Lexington, KY!

Here’s a breakdown of predictions and picks for this NCAA Tournament game tipping off at 9:25PM ET on March 20, 2025!

Utah State vs UCLA Game Details

Date: Thursday, March 20, 2025
Time: 9:25 PM ET / 6:25 PM PT
Broadcast: TNT
Location: Rupp Arena, Lexington, KY
Spread: UCLA -5.5 | Total: 144.5

Utah State vs UCLA Betting Preview

If this was a second round matchup with a short turnaround, we would be much more inclined to look in Utah State’s direction. But with plenty of time to prep and gameplan, Mick Cronin gets the benefit of the doubt.

Utah State plays zone defense on 66.4-percent of its defensive possessions, which is by-far the highest rate in the Tournament (no team is higher than 30-percent). UCLA has not seen a zone defense in the Big Ten in quite a while, but with plenty of time to prep, Cronin gets the benefit of the doubt.

Much has been made about the Bruins’ struggles on the road this season, and those are certainly valid. However, Utah State is in the exact same boat.

Erik Haslam maintains a metric called “Away From Home” to quantify the difference between a team’s performance at home compared to road and neutral site games.

The Aggies are No. 348 in that category. Haslam also maintains a momentum metric to show what kind of form a team is currently in. Utah State is No. 294. Let’s keep going, shall we?

Evan Miya maintains a metric called Opponent Strength Adjustment to highlight how teams play against various levels of competition. Utah State is bottom-5 in the country when facing better competition.

Utah State vs UCLA Predictions

The Aggies’ four rivals in the Mountain West were Boise State, San Diego State, Colorado State and New Mexico.

Since January 1, Utah State went 3-5 straight-up and against the spread against those four teams. If you need the icing on the cake, you can always go back to the ol’ reliable Mountain West numbers.

Per Evan Abrams, Mountain West teams have gone 10-24 against the spread since 2016. Double-digit seeds from the Mountain West have gone 2-32 straight-up, 5-27-2 against the spread.

Utah State vs UCLA Prediction: UCLA -5.5

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