Considered by many as the nation’s most prolific attack, UCLA got booted out of the PAC-12 tournament showcasing a stagnant offense. They fell flat against Arizona’s aggressive defense, 86-75, with touted backcourt monsters Lonzo Ball and Bryce Alford combining to go 4-for-19 from the floor.
The struggle continued down low, as big man TJ Leaf only made three of his nine attempts, and had to earn much of his points from the line. He and Thomas Welsh were also smoked on the other end by Lauri Markkanen, who scored a game-high 29.
Isaac Hamilton’s team-high 20 points made him the lone Bruin to provide good damage. Excluding his stats, the entire UCLA squad shot a woeful 17-for-46 (36.9 percent).
Despite all of that, though, everyone should still know that the Bruins are in a good position to go deep in the tournament. They are still the number one team in points (90.4 PPG), field goal shooting (51.7 percent), and assists (21.4 APG), and if they could adjust their suspect defensive scheme, opponents will be bowing to them again soon.
The Bruins are 10-1 in their last 11 games (4-7 ATS).
Betting on the Kent State Golden Flashes (22-13, 10-8 MAC)
Kent State is going to the dance for the first time in eight years, and only the sixth time in their 104-year history in the league. So, two things first: WOW.. and congratulations to the school.
They are entering the tourney as winners in nine of their last 10 games (7-2-1 ATS), and although streaks that long usually indicate that a team is cruising against their opponents, this is an exception, as the Golden Flashes only have an average winning margin of 3.5 points in that span.
The team’s go-to guy for the past three seasons is Jimmy Hall, who transferred from Hofstra in 2014. He is their one-man wrecking crew and does a little bit of everything on both ends of the court, as evidenced by leading the team in points, rebounds, assists, blocks, and field goal percentage. The senior has also been exceptional in the current 10-game stretch – 21.6 points, 10.2 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 2.1 blocks on 56.5 percent shooting.
Hall will be facing the tough defense of Leaf, Welsh, and all the other bruisers of UCLA, but he is also sure to cause problems for defenders. Helping him are Jaylin Walker (15.6 PPG) and Deon Edwin (13 PPG) – Walker is the team’s designated shooter, while Edwin is a guard that can fill the stat sheet with his offense and aggressive defense.
Kent State’s 76.9 PPG and 169th-ranked offense is obviously far from the Bruins abilities, and their defense may be overmatched as well, although we should remember that it’s March Madness.
