The 12th-seeded UCSB Gauchos (22-4) take the court in the first round of the NCAA Tournament against the No. 5 seed Creighton Bluejays (20-8) on Saturday. The contest tips off at 3:30 PM ET on TRU. UCSB is a underdog in the game. Here’s what you need to know before filling out your brackets for this 5-12 matchup in the West Region.
The betting insights in this article reflect betting data from DraftKings as of March 15, 2021, 4:10 PM ET. See table below for current betting odds and CLICK HERE to bet at DraftKings Sportsbook.
Betting Odds
Creighton Betting Information
- Creighton is under .500 against the spread this season with a record of 11-14
- The Bluejays have a losing record against the spread when favored by at least 6.5 points, going 8-9 this season.
- In 44% of its games this season (11/25), Creighton and its opponents have outscored the set over/under.
- In their last game, the Bluejays got a team-high 17 points from Marcus Zegarowski in a 73-48 loss to Georgetown on Saturday. They were favored by 8.5 points and failed to covered the spread, and the teams combined to score 121 points to go under the 143 point total.
Against the Spread (ATS) records are only reflective of games that had odds on them.
Creighton Players to Watch
| Name | GP | PTS | REB | ASST | STL | BLK | 3PM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marcus Zegarowski | 26 | 15.5 | 3.7 | 4.3 | 1.3 | 0.0 | 2.7 |
| Denzel Mahoney | 27 | 12.5 | 4.2 | 1.7 | 1.4 | 0.1 | 2.2 |
| Damien Jefferson | 28 | 12.1 | 5.5 | 2.4 | 1.2 | 0.3 | 1.1 |
| Christian Bishop | 28 | 10.8 | 5.9 | 1.2 | 0.7 | 1.1 | 0.0 |
| Mitch Ballock | 28 | 10.2 | 3.1 | 2.5 | 0.9 | 0.2 | 2.6 |
UCSB Betting Information
- With an 11-9 record ATS this season, UCSB has outplayed expectations.
- When they play as at least a 6.5-point underdog, the Gauchos manage an even 6-6 record against the spread.
- In 20 games this season, the Gauchos have hit the over in exactly half of their games.
- Their last time out, the Gauchos saw Jaquori McLaughlin rack up a team-high 22 points to lead them to a 79-63 win over UC Irvine on Saturday. They were 3.5-point favorites and covered the spread, and the teams scored 142 total points to top the 126.5-point over/under.
Against the Spread (ATS) records are only reflective of games that had odds on them.
UCSB Players to Watch
| Name | GP | PTS | REB | ASST | STL | BLK | 3PM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| JaQuori McLaughlin | 25 | 16.2 | 3.4 | 5.2 | 1.6 | 0.1 | 1.6 |
| Amadou Sow | 25 | 13.7 | 7.6 | 0.6 | 0.6 | 0.6 | 0.0 |
| Ajare Sanni | 24 | 11.2 | 2.7 | 1.8 | 0.8 | 0.0 | 1.7 |
| Miles Norris | 26 | 9.6 | 4.5 | 1.8 | 0.7 | 0.9 | 1.2 |
| Devearl Ramsey | 26 | 7.6 | 2.9 | 3.6 | 1.7 | 0.0 | 1.2 |
Total Facts
- Creighton’s games this year have resulted in a higher total score than Saturday’s matchup point total (137.5 points) in 64.3% of opportunities (18 out of 28 matchups).
- In 50% of UCSB’s games this season (13 of 26), the total points scored was more than Saturday’s 137.5-point over/under.
- Together, the two teams combine for 153.5 points per game, 16.0 points more than the total of 137.5 for this game.
- This game’s total is 6.4 more points than the 131.1 these two teams combine to give up per game in 2020-21.
- This season, the average total for Bluejays games is 145.2 points, 7.7 more than the over/under of 137.5 points for this contest.
- The over/under for this contest is 1.8 points fewer than the average over/under in Gauchos games this season (139.3 points).
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