Who’s gonna stop the UCLA Bruins? The Bruins, who started in the First Four, have just booked a spot in the Elite Eight, but they get the Michigan Wolverines up next, the top seed over at the West Region. Will UCLA continue to work its March magic? Or will the Wolverines put an end to the Bruins’ Cinderella run?
The Bruins are one gutsy team. Mick Cronin has also done a fantastic job of preparing his boys in this March Madness, as UCLA just reached the Elite Eight with an 88-78 win over the Alabama Crimson Tide on Sunday in the Sweet Sixteen round. Defense was once again a key for UCLA in the win over Alabama. The Crimson Tide managed to score just 0.99 points per possession and went just 7 of 28 from deep. Johnny Juzang and Jaime Jaquez along with Jules Bernard took turns in providing the spark on offense for UCLA. Jaquez and Bernard had 17 points, while Juzang scored 13. It will be a tough ask for UCLA to shut down Michigan’s offense, but the Bruins have been exceeding expectations in the Big Dance. This is a team that’s totally flipped the switch this month. The Wolverines could find that out the hard way this Tuesday.
UCLA is undefeated against the spread (ATS) in four games so far in the 2021 NCAA Tournament.
Unlike in their second-round win over the LSU Tigers, the Wolverines dominated the Florida State Seminoles from start to finish of their Sweet Sixteen matchup on Sunday. Michigan eked out a 71-66 win over Florida State to advance to the Elite Eight. Hunter Dickinson had 14 points and eight rebounds against the tall front-court of the Seminoles, and that could serve as a preview of the damage the freshman big man can unleash on the considerably smaller lineup of UCLA. But Dickinson isn’t the only problem for the Bruins’ defense. Franz Wagner, the sweet-shooting 6-9 sophomore can stretch the floor and take advantage of mismatches. Although he missed all four of his outside shots in the FSU game, Wagner is still shooting 37.2 percent from long range this season. Michigan always finds a way to adapt to its opponents and win games, but it seems that the Wolverines will command the tempo of their meeting with UCLA, due to better rebounding and more efficient scoring.
Michigan is 2-0 ATS in its last two games overall.
