Utah Running Utes vs BYU Cougars Betting Picks & Predictions
Utah is on the road playing BYU at the Marriott Center stadium on Saturday, 12/17/2022 @ 6:00pm EST. Utah -2.5 was the opening favorite and current line is Utah
Game outlook
Utah is on the road playing BYU at the Marriott Center stadium on Saturday, 12/17/2022 @ 6:00pm EST. Utah -2.5 was the opening favorite and current line is Utah -3.
In-state rival BYU Cougars (6-5, 0-0 WCC) visit Utah Utes (9-2, 2-0 Pac-12) on Saturday. A 91-70 victory over UTSA on Tuesday night marked Utah's fifth consecutive win. With 27 points, Branden Carlson led the Utes. O n Saturday, BYU defeated Creighton 83-80. BYU snapped a two-game losing streak with the victory. BYU will be without Hao Dong and Spencer Johnson is questionable, while Utah has no injury report.
Defense is Utah's key to success
The Utes score plenty of points (76.0 ppg), but their defense wins games. Utah allows just 59.6 points per game, which is 21st in the nation. The Utes allow a field goal shooting percentage of 34.4%, third highest in the country, and a three-point shooting percentage of 25.4%, fifth best. With an average of 7.4 boards per game, Branden Carlson leads Utah with 44.0 rebounds per game. The Utes average 4.4 steals and 6.0 blocked shots per game. With an average of .08 steals per game, Gabe Madsen leads the team in steals, while Carlson leads the team in blocks with 2.5 per game.
In terms of defense, BYU gives up too much
The BYU Cougars allow 72.8 points per game, while opponents shoot 43.8% overall and 36.8% from three-point range. Due to poor defense, the Cougars have already lost to South Dakota and Utah Valley. Fousseyni Traore leads BYU with 8.6 rebounds per game, averaging 40.1 rebounds per game. With an average of 1.6 steals per game, Gideon George tops the team in steals, while Atiki Ally Atiki leads the team in blocked shots.