UCLA vs Nebraska Prediction College Basketball Picks 1/4/25

The UCLA Bruins and the Nebraska Cornhuskers meet Saturday in college basketball action from the Pinnacle Bank Arena. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a UCLA vs. Nebraska prediction.

UCLA Recap

The UCLA Bruins come into this game with a record of 11-2 on the year after a 65-62 win over the Gonzaga Bulldogs in their last matchup. After this game, UCLA will head back home for a matchup with Michigan.

Bruins Looking To Rebuild Momentum

Tyler Bilodeau leads the Bruins in scoring with 14.5 PPG along with 5.2 RPG while Eric Dailey Jr. has 11.4 PPG with 4.6 RPG as the only other double-digit scorer for UCLA up to this point in the year. Sebastian Mack has 9.8 PPG while Dylan Andrews has 8.1 PPG with 2.8 APG and Kobe Johnson’s chipped in 7.5 PPG with team-highs of 5.5 RPG and 3.4 APG as well as 2.2 SPG to lead the Bruins in rebounding, assists and steals as well this season. As a team, UCLA is averaging 77.4 PPG on 47.3% shooting from the field, 37.1% from three and 68.8% from the foul line this season.

Why the UCLA Bruins will win

• UCLA has won each of its last six games when playing with a rest advantage.
• Nebraska has lost 16 of its last 18 games against AP-ranked opponents at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

Nebraska Recap

The Nebraska Cornhuskers come into this game looking to add on to their 77-43 win over Southern in their last matchup to improve to 11-2 on the year. After this game, Nebraska will head on the road for a matchup with the Iowa Hawkeyes.

Cornhuskers Win 5th Straight

Brice Williams leads the Cornhuskers in scoring with 19 PPG along with 3.4 RPG and 2.5 APG while Connor Essegian has 12.4 PPG and Juwan Gary has 11.7 PPG with 3.8 RPG to cap off the trio of double-digit scorers for Nebraska so far this season. Rollie Worster has 8.2 PPg with 4.2 RPG and a team-high 2.8 APG to lead the Cornhuskers in assists while Berke Buyuktuncel has 7.9 PPG with a team-high 6.6 RPG to lead Nebraska in rebounding and Andrew Morgan also has 7.8 PPG with 5.1 RPG as well on the year. As a team, Nebraska is averaging 77.7 PPG on 47.2% shooting from the field, 34.4% from three and 76.5% from the foul line this season.

Why the Nebraska Cornhuskers will win

• Nebraska has won each of its last 19 games at Pinnacle Bank Arena.
• UCLA has lost five of its last six day games against the Big Ten Conference.

Total Points Facts

• Each of Nebraska’s last seven games against AP-ranked opponents have produced a total of 137+ points.
• Four of UCLA’s last five games against Conference opponents have produced a total of 131 or fewer points.

UCLA vs. Nebraska Prediction

I’m going to take a shot on Nebraska here. I know UCLA has a top-tier defense and just when you think Mick Cronin’s group might be in a position to put up a dud, they show up like they did against Gonzaga. However, Fred Hoiberg has some solid defensive looks up his sleeve and I think he’s going to throw everything at UCLA in this one. All in all, I look for the Cornhuskers to get the win and cover at home in this one so give me Nebraska.