First a breakdown of both teams by various college basketball rankings from four prominent ranking systems.
UCLA Bruins: Men's Basketball
Rating Percentage Index (RPI)Â Ranking:Â 245
College Basketball Power Index (BPI)Â Rankings:Â 129
Pomeroy College Basketball (Ken Pom)Â Ranking:Â 108
Net (NCAA)Â Ranking:Â 175
Utah Utes: Men's Basketball
Rating Percentage Index (RPI) Ranking: 23
College Basketball Power Index (BPI) Ranking:Â 38
Pomeroy College Basketball (KenPom) Ranking:Â 31
Net (NCAA)Â Ranking:Â 29
A closer look and breakdown of the basketball history between Utah and UCLA and game prediction.
The current winning streak in this series between the Bruins and the Utes:Â UCLA has won the last seven games against Utah in this Pac-12 rivalry.
Last game between Utah and UCLA:Â The Bruins defeated the Utes on the road on February 23rd of last season by a final score of 78-71.
Best victory for the Utes and Bruins this season according to their opponent's current NET Ranking:Â For Utah, it was a victory against in-state rival BYU and for UCLA l it was a road win against Oregon State.
The record for UCLA against Utah for the last ten meetings they played against one another:Â The Bruins have won seven of the last ten games between the Utes and Bruins.
Which team is predicted to win the game according to ESPN Analytics?: They have Utah as having a 87.2% chance of defeating UCLA in this game.
Game Prediction:Â The prediction is a UCLA victory only because their backs are up to the wall and they desperately need a win more than Utah does. Also with Lazar Stefanovic who played for the Utes from the 2021-2023 seasons, the Bruins grind out a win on the road for a much-needed victory with the final score being UCLA 72 Utah 70.