The No. 14 UCLA Bruins (9-2) take on the No. 13 Kentucky Wildcats (7-2) Saturday in the CBS Sports Classic. Tip-off from Madison Square Garden is at 5:15 p.m. ET (CBS). Below, we analyze Tipico Sportsbook’s lines around the UCLA vs. Kentucky odds, and make our expert college basketball picks, predictions and bets.
Kentucky comes into this game after a long layoff following a 69-59 victory over the Yale Bulldogs last Saturday. They picked up a tough 73-69 win in London against the Michigan Wolverines on Dec. 4. The Wildcats feature defending player of the year F Oscar Tshiebwe, who, despite the Wildcats already having 2 losses on the young season, is still having a solid season with 16.1 points and 13.3 rebounds per game.
UCLA enters off an 87-60 demolition of Maryland Wednesday. The Bruins jumped out an early lead that eventually ballooned into a 38-point cushion at one point. This will be an entirely different game as the Bruins take on the Wildcats and coach John Calipari and will be a barometer test for both schools in finding out what needs to be fixed before March comes around.