The NCAA March Madness brings us some incredible battles and things are going to heat up as we head deeper. It is important to note that this is a knockout tournament and a loss means that the season is over. In this game, UCLA will likely knock off UNC Asheville as we begin the First Round.

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UCLA

UCLA finished with an impressive record of 29 wins and five losses, finishing at the top of Pac-12 MBB. They are one of the best defensive squads and restricted teams to around 60 points a game, which was the seventh-best effort among 350+ teams. They are wonderful at reading lanes and clinching steals while also contesting shots at a high clip. Scoring-wise, they were careful operators and didn’t turn the ball over much. Jaime Jaquez led scoring-wise, averaging over 17 points, and rebounding-wise, he led with around 8 rebounds a game. Three-point shooting is an issue for the squad and they like to operate mostly from the inside. 

UNC Asheville

UNC did an incredible job of winning 27 and losing seven under coach Mike Morrell and finished first in Big South MBB. They shot 47.7 percent from the field and made 39% of their three-pointers which was the seventh-best among 350+ teams. Taijon Jones was one of the best shooters in the nation, making almost three triples in a game, averaging 15 points a game. However, it was Drew Pember who was their most impressive offensive player, averaging more than 21 points and more than nine rebounds a game. UNC’s long-range defense was impressive and they held opponents to 29.7% which was 13th best.

Injuries

• UCLA: QUESTIONABLE: Adam Bona;
• UNC: Nothing to report.

Expert Betting Tips

UCLA’s top defense will test UNC which loves to stretch the floor and chooses high-quality shots. This has the making of a grind-out battle and a low-scorer, which may favor UCLA a bit. Still, with a scorer like Pumber, UNC will fancy their chances against the second-seeded squad. I favor UCLA here but expect a big fight from UNC.