UCLA vs. Alabama Sweet 16 Bracket Prediction: March Madness Odds
The only double-digit NCAA Tournament seed in action among Sunday’s four Sweet 16 games is No. 11 UCLA, as the Bruins take on No. 2 Alabama in East Region play from Indianapolis. The Tide are 5.5-point favourites on the college basketball odds with a total of 142.5.
UCLA Bruins vs. Alabama Crimson Tide NCAA Tournament Point Spread and Betting
The winner faces either No. 4 Florida State or No. 1 Michigan next Tuesday for a spot in the Final Four. UCLA would be an underdog versus both, while Alabama would be favoured over FSU.
The Bruins are one of a whopping four double-digit seeds in the Sweet 16 along with No. 12 Oregon State, No. 15 Oral Roberts and No. 11 Syracuse, all of which play Saturday (and all quite likely to lose). UCLA’s Pac-12 has been the story of the Big Dance as the conference only got five schools in, but four are still standing. The only Pac-12 school to lose was Colorado in the Round of 32 on Monday versus Florida State.
It’s the sixth all-time meeting between UCLA and Alabama. The Bruins lead 3-2 but lost the most recent matchup in December 2014. The Bruins are 10-21 against the spread in their past 31 neutral-site games as underdogs. The Tide are 1-6 ATS in their past seven NCAA Tournament games as a favourite (1-1 ATS in this tournament).
(11) UCLA Bruins
The Bruins (20-9) closed the season with four straight losses, including one in the Pac-12 Tournament, and barely made it into the Big Dance as one of the final at-large teams. UCLA probably should have lost in the First Four to Michigan State but rallied to win in overtime, and they have clearly been the better team since, with a win over No. 6 BYU on Saturday (73-62) and Cinderella No. 14 Abilene Christian 67-47 on Monday. Sophomore guard Johnny Juzang, a Kentucky transfer who averaged 25.0 points in the team’s first two wins, added a game-high 17 versus Abilene Christian. Forward Cody Riley had a double-double of 12 points and 12 rebounds. After trailing 12-8 to start the game, the Bruins went on an 18-0 run to take a 26-12 lead and it was essentially over. It’s UCLA’s 15th all-time trip to the Sweet 16 and first since 2017.
(2) Alabama Crimson Tide
SEC regular-season and tournament champion Alabama (26-6) had little trouble in dispatching No. 15 Iona on Saturday and then No. 10 Maryland on Monday, 96-77. The Tide got a surprise boost from freshman and Toronto native Josh Primo versus the Terps. Primo was expected to miss another game due to a knee injury but had 10 points and four rebounds off the bench. SEC Player of the Year Herb Jones was held to six points, but Jaden Shackelford had 21 points and John Petty Jr. had 20. Jahvon Quinerly recorded his first career double-double with 14 points and a career-best 11 assists, the most assists in a game this season by any Tide player. It’s Alabama’s eighth Sweet 16 visit and first since 2004.
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