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Oregon vs. UCLA Prediction and Odds for Sunday, December 4 (Books Giving Too Many Points to Ducks)

By Ben Heisler

Oregon Ducks N'Faly Dante and Rivaldo Soares celebrate after teammate Will Richardson was fouled and scored.
Oregon Ducks N'Faly Dante and Rivaldo Soares celebrate after teammate Will Richardson was fouled and scored. / Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA
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After stumbling through non-conference play, the 4-4 Oregon Ducks appear to be righting the ship with two straight wins against quality opponents in Villanova and Washington State at home.

Now, they head to Pauley Pavilion for their first true road game of the season when they face the No. 21 ranked UCLA Bruins on Sunday afternoon.

The Bruins are 6-2 on the season and have won three straight after tough losses against Illinois and Baylor back in mid-November.

The home team has covered in four of the last five games in this matchup, but will that trend continue with UCLA approaching double digits as a home favorite?

Here are the latest odds:

Oregon vs. UCLA Odds, Spread and Total

Oregon vs. UCLA Prediction and Pick

Despite this game being the Ducks' first true road game of the season, UCLA laying 10.5 points is a lot for an in-conference game against a quality opponent.

The Ducks' .500 record may not look sexy, but this is still the No. 42 ranked team in KenPom ratings this year with a top 30 adjusted offense in all of college basketball. The Ducks are a top 20 offensive rebounding team, and while they've had issues shooting from long range, their identity is a super length, athletic team that will beat you up inside and get second chance opportunities.

Center N'Faly Dante is an absolute force inside, averaging 14.3 points and 6.4 rebounds on the season, and Oregon has several guys who are matchup-proof defensively on the roster. The Bruins' own the seventh-best adjusted offense in the country, but the Ducks are starting to get some swagger back defensively, and this could turn into a rock fight in the second half if they can use their length to contest open shots for UCLA.

Even ranked No. 21 in the country, the Bruins are still being overlooked nationally as a legitimate Final Four contender, but not by Vegas. In fact, I think they're even a bit overrated heading into this game specifically.

I wouldn't doubt the Ducks to keep this one close.

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