UC Irvine vs. Cal Poly Prediction, Odds for College Basketball on Thursday, Feb. 12

The Big West had a logjam atop the conference with five different teams within 1.5 games of the lead. One of the teams currently tied for the top spot is the UC Irvine Anteaters, sitting at 9-3.

Unfortunately for the Cal Poly Mustangs, they're on the outside looking in at 5-8, but if they can string some wins together, starting with an upset against the Anteaters tonight, they still have enough time to get back in the mix.

Let's dive into the odds and best bet for tonight's Big West showdown.

UC Irvine vs. Cal Poly Odds, Spread, and Total

Odds via FanDuel Sportsbook

Spread

UC Irvine -5.5 (-110)
Cal Poly +5.5 (-110)

Moneyline

UC Irvine -265
Cal Poly +215

Total

OVER 157.5 (-115)
UNDER 157.5 (-105)

UC Irvine vs. Cal Poly How to Watch

Date: Thursday, February 12
Game Time: 10:00 pm ET
Venue: Mott Athletics Center
How to Watch (TV): ESPN+
UC Irvine Record: 16-8 (9-3 in Big West)
Cal Poly Record: 9-16 (5-8 in Big West)

UC Irvine vs. Cal Poly Betting Trends

The UNDER is 6-3 in UC Irvine's last nine games
UC Irvine is 4-1 ATS in its last five games vs. Cal Poly
UC Irvine is 15-5 straight up in its last 20 road games
The OVER is 4-1 in the last five meetings between these teams
Cal Poly is 8-2 ATS in its last 10 games played on a Thursday

UC Irvine vs. Cal Poly Key Player to Watch

Hamad Mousa, G - Cal Poly Mustangs

Hamad Mousa is going to be by far the most important player on the court tonight. Not only is he averaging 20.8 points and 5.9 rebounds per game, but the key to beating UC Irvine is attack the Anteaters on the perimeter, and Mousa is the Mustangs' primary three-point shooter. He's hitting his threes at a rate of 37.6% this season, so if he can improve on that mark tonight, Cal Poly will have a chance to pull off the upset.

UC Irvine vs. Cal Poly Prediction and Pick

In today's edition of Daily Dunk, I wrote about why I'm taking the points with Cal Poly at home.

Any team that relies on attacking the interior of its opponents' defense is one you want to bet against when they play UC Irvine. No one has a better defensive front court than the Anteaters, leading the country in opponent two-point field goal percentage.

Unfortunately for them, they have to hit the road tonight to take on a Cal Poly team that doesn't both take two-point shots. Cal Poly ranks fourth in college basketball in 3-point shot rate, which is great news for them, considering that's the weakness of the UC Irvine defense. The Anteaters rank outside the top 150 in opponent 3-point field goal percentage.

If Cal Poly can get the ball to drop from three, UC Irvine doesn't have the offense to keep up, ranking 295th in effective field goal percentage.

With Cal Poly on its home court, I'll take the 5.5 points with the Mustangs.

Pick: Cal Poly +5.5 (-110)

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