The Long Beach State Beach (21-14) and Arizona Wildcats (25-8) meet Thursday for an NCAA Tournament first-round game. Tip-off from the Delta Center in Salt Lake City is scheduled for 2 p.m. ET (TBS). Below, we analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s'lines around the Long Beach State vs. Arizona odds, and make our expert college basketball picks, predictions and best bets.
Long Beach State, the 15th seed in the West Region, fired coach Dan Monson prior to the Big West Tournament, but allowed him to finish out the season. All he did was lead his team to a Big West Tournament championship, winning over UC Riverside, UC Irvine and UC Davis en route to a trophy. It also covered all 3 games while cashing the Over in 2 of the 3 outings.
Arizona secured the No. 2 seed in the West Region despite losing in the 2nd game of the Pac-12 Tournament March 15. The Under cashed in both of the tourney games while going 6-2 across the past 8 outings. Arizona is just 5-3 straight up (SU) in the 8-game span.
These teams meet for the 1st time since Nov. 24, 2019, a 104-67 win by the Wildcats. Arizona has won 5 straight meetings dating back to Nov. 19, 2012, going 4-1 against the spread (ATS) with the Over going 3-1-1 in the 5-game span.