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NCAA Basketball: Utah vs. UCLA

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NCAA Basketball: Utah vs. UCLA

The red hot Utah Utes will be travelling to Pauley Pavilion on Thursday, to take on the struggling UCLA Bruins, in the first game of a three game road trip.

#11 Utah Utes (16-3, 6-1 Pac 12) vs. UCLA Bruins (11-9, 3-4 Pac 12), Thursday, January 29, 10 PM. ET. ESPN2.

The Utah Utes have been playing better than expected this season, and are looking like a team that can make a deep run in the NCAA tournament this season. They have won nine of their last 10 games, including their first meeting against the Bruins on the 4th of January. 

The key to Utah's success this season has been their smothering defense, they are holding opponents to 56.5 points per game, which is 12th in the country, they also average 26.4 rebounds, and 5 blocks per game, which are the 38th and 33rd best averages in the nation. On offense, Utah is also very dangerous, and they average 75.1 points per game, which is 35th in the country. They have a very balanced attack, led by senior guard Delon Wright, who is averaging 14.6 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.3 steals, and 6.1 assists per game.

The Utes lost their last game on the road, allowing Arizona to score a season high 69 points against them, but they bounced back with two straight wins, against Washington and Washington state, and will be trying to extend their streak to three games on Thursday night. 

The UCLA Bruins haven't been as good as they were expected to be this season, and have lost seven of their last 10 games, including their last two games. They will be trying to get back on track, against the team that held them to their worst shooting night this season. In their first game against Utah, UCLA shot 29 percent from the field, and their leading scorer, Bryce Alford, was held scoreless, going 0-10 from the field. 

One of the reasons they have struggled this season is their lack of defensive intensity, the Bruins allow opponents to score 70.1 points per game, which is 276th in the country. The team will need to play much better defensively the rest of the way, if they want to make any postseason tournament. Offensively, the team hasn't been as bad, and they are averaging 72 points per game, which is 85th in the country. The coach does have to consider benching leading scorer Bryce Alford, who also leads the team in minutes played, because he is shooting 38 percent from the field this season, which is not very good, especially for a guard.

In their game at Utah, the Bruins were held to 39 points, which was their lowest offensive output since 1967, and they eventually lost the game by 32 points, but don't expect to see a similar performance this time around, because the Bruins have played very well at home this season, and have only lost one home game this season, which came against 9th ranked Gonzaga. The team might be without their center Tony Parker, who has been playing very well lately, but missed the last two games due to back spasms.

My Pick: The Bruins will play much better than they did in the first game, but it still won't be enough to defeat Utah.

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