College basketball picks: Santa Clara-BYU prediction, odds, spread for February 16

We have an intriguing West Coast Conference matchup to look forward to tonight as the Santa Clara Broncos hit the road to battle the BYU Cougars at 9 p.m. ET. The game will take place at the Marriott Center in Provo, UT, and will air on CBS Sports Network.

Let's take a look at the odds and lines on DraftKings Sportsbook and make some picks.

Santa Clara vs. BYU odds

Spread: BYU -5
Over/Under: 149.5
Moneyline: BYU -205, Santa Clara +175

Santa Clara (19-8, 7-5 WCC) is riding a three-game win streak into this showdown and last edged Loyola-Marymount in a 71-69 home victory last Saturday. This was a tight contest all throughout the second half and a late free throw by Brandin Podziemski gave the Broncos a two-point advantage with 18 seconds left. Both of the Lions' shot attempts in the game's closing moments missed the mark, allowing for the Broncos to escape with the win. Podziemski led with 30 points and five rebounds.

BYU (16-12, 6-7 WCC) has dropped two straight heading into tonight's matchup and were last bested by Gonzaga in an 88-81 loss last Saturday. The Cougars actually had a six-point lead with less than nine minutes remaining in the game before the Bulldogs quickly stormed back and took control for the rest of the way. The Cougars got themselves into foul trouble in this one, committing 28 personal fouls that allowed for the Zags to make 26 of 34 free throw attempts. Spencer Johnson led BYU with 17 points and seven assists in the loss.

The Pick: Under 149.5

The key for BYU here will be trying to slow this game down and turn this into a defensive battle. The Cougars boast the 36th ranked defense in adjusted efficiency on KenPom and is one of the better units in the nation on the defensive glass. Despite them being involved in several relatively high-scoring affairs as of late, I'll predict the Cougars turning this into a slog at times and the under cashing.

  
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