Santa Clara vs UC Irvine Betting Preview
It’s a light night in the world of college basketball, but there are a handful of teams in action on the West Coast whose names you might need to know in March. Sportsmemo NCAAB handicapper JM Sports breaks down tonight’s Santa Clara vs UC Irvine matchup.
Check out our College Basketball Free Picks page for betting thoughts from some of the country’s top handicappers.
Santa Clara vs UC Irvine Betting Odds
Thursday, December 15 | College Basketball Betting Notes |
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Point Spread: | Santa Clara Broncos -1 vs UC Irvine Anteaters |
Total: | 142 Points |
Game Time: | 9:00pm ET / 6:00pm PT |
Arena: | Leavey Center in Santa Clara, CA (Odds Above by DraftKings) |
TV: | WCC Network |
Santa Clara vs UC Irvine Analysis
The first place team in the West Coast Conference will take the court tonight, and no, that is NOT Gonzaga at the moment. The Santa Clara Broncos take on the UC Irvine Anteaters out of the Big West Conference.
UC Irvine Taking On Harder Non-Conference Schedule
Before taking a dive into their metrics, you have to take a closer look at the schedule that these teams have played.
Santa Clara has already played two more games that Irvine, which is a little unusual since this season is only five weeks old. Irvine has played the noticeably harder schedule and has some key advantages on both sides of the ball.
On the offensive end, the Anteaters are tenth in the nation in three-point percentage, shooting 40.4-percent as a team from beyond the arc. Santa Clara ranks 230th in defending the three-pointer, allowing the opposition to shoot nearly 35-percent from deep.
Anteaters Keys In On Stout Defense
On the other side of the ball, Irvine has played some fantastic defense this season. The Anteaters rank inside the top-50 in effective field goal defense and they are a top-20 team in defensive rebounding percentage.
So not only do they force a lot of misses, they are great at rebounding them as well. Opponents are shooting below 30-percent from beyond-the-arc against the Anteaters this season
Neither team is particularly good at forcing turnovers, so we could see some long, drawn-out possessions in this one. Irvine will lean on 7-foot German center Bent Leuchten to patrol the paint, grab rebounds and control the game from the inside.
Santa Clara vs UC Irvine Prediction
Santa Clara is 6-1 straight-up at home this season, but they have dropped the point spread decision in each of the last four. Irvine is 5-1 against the spread away from home this year, and the Anteaters have covered the spread in each of the last six meetings between these two teams.
Prediction : UC Irvine Anteaters +1
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College Basketball Stat Sheet
GoldSheet prepares a daily college basketball stat sheet, which offers a head-to-head comparison for how teams are performing in a number of key areas heading into a game. Check out Thursday’s sheet, with notes on tonight’s Santa Clara vs UC Irvine contest.
Happy Hour Tip-Off Show
Get your daily fix of college hoops betting information with Joe Raineri and a rotating panel of handicapping guests.
The Happy Hour Tip-Off Show will broadcast Monday through Friday at 1:45pm ET / 10:45am PT. Pull up a barstool and join us as we break down tonight’s college basketball card, including possibly this Santa Clara vs UC Irvine clash, from a sports betting perspective.
College Basketball Odds Screen
Sportsmemo’s live odds screen features up-to-the-minute lines from a variety of offshore and domestic sports books.
Track the college basketball point spreads, moneylines, first half lines and betting percentages for all of Thursday’s college basketball games, including this Santa Clara vs UC Irvine showdown, from your desktop or phone.
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