The No. 14 Arizona Wildcats will look to continue their strong start in the first round of the 2022 Maui Invitational against the Cincinnati Bearcats on Monday night in Maui. Arizona is 3-0 to begin the 2022-23 season and enters off a 104-77 win over Utah Tech. Cincinnati is 3-1, having most recently lost to Northern Kentucky on the road, 64-51. The winner of this game will face the winner of Ohio State vs. No. 17 San Diego State in the second round on Tuesday. Both teams are 1-2 against the spread in 2022.
Tip-off is set for 11:30 p.m. ET at the Lahaina Civic Center. The Wildcats are favored by 9.5 points in the latest Arizona vs. Cincinnati odds from Caesars Sportsbook, while the over/under is set at 159. Before entering any Cincinnati vs. Arizona picks, you'll want to see the college basketball predictions from the model at SportsLine.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every Division I college basketball game 10,000 times. Over the past six-plus years, the proprietary computer model has generated more than $1,400 for $100 players on its top-rated college basketball picks against the spread. Anybody who has followed it has seen profitable returns.
Now, the model has set its sights on Cincinnati-Arizona. You can head to SportsLine to see its picks. Here are several college basketball odds for Arizona vs. Cincinnati:
- Arizona vs. Cincinnati spread: Arizona -9.5
- Arizona vs. Cincinnati over/under: 159 points
- Arizona vs. Cincinnati money line: Arizona -440, Cincinnati +340
- Arizona vs. Cincinnati picks: See picks here
Why Arizona can cover
The Wildcats are the highest scoring team in the country thus far, averaging more than 105 points per game in wins over Nicholls, Southern, and Utah Tech despite being without one of their best players. Texas grad transfer guard Courtney Ramey, who was suspended by the NCAA for the first three games of the season, returns for this one and should contribute to the Wildcats potent attack having averaged 10 points per game during his four seasons as a Longhorn. Four Wildcats are averaging more than 15 points per game thus far: forward Azuolas Tubelis (20.0), center Oumar Ballo (17.0), guard Pelle Larsson (15.7), and point guard Kerr Kriisa (15.7).
Ballo leads the team averaging 9.3 rebounds per contest and Kriisa leads in assists per game with eight. Against Nicholls, Kriisa even had a triple double, 14 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists in 29 minutes. If there are concerns for the Wildcats, turnovers and defense jump to the top of the list. The team plays quickly and sometimes recklessly, averaging 20.3 turnovers per game. Also, against inferior competition, the Wildcats are giving up nearly 77 points a game. If they're going to make a run at the Maui Invitational title, it's unlikely they'll be able to win three extremely high scoring games in consecutive days.
Why Cincinnati can cover
The Bearcats' loss to Northern Kentucky last Wednesday was due to poor shooting as Cincinnati only managed to make 20 of 59 field goal attempts (33.9%), 6 of 21 3-pointers (28.6%), and 5 of 13 free throws (38.5%). In their three victories over Chaminade, Cleveland State, and Eastern Kentucky, the Bearcats averaged 84.7 points, which might be necessary tonight if they're going to pull the sizable upset. Cincinnati is led by guard David DeJulius (18.3 PPG), guard Landers Nolley II (14.0) and guard Jeremiah Davenport (12.0).
For the Bearcats to find success, they'll have to slow down the pace of the game and compete with the Wildcats on the boards. Cincinnati is only allowing 61.5 points per game (72nd nationally) though the Wildcats will likely increase that total. Arizona is ninth in the country with a rebounding margin of 16 per game while Cincinnati is 27th with a margin of 10.5 on the glass. Wes Miller's team will need to use the press effectively to force turnovers with the hope of at least keeping the game close deep into the second half.
How to make Arizona vs. Cincinnati picks
The model has simulated Cincinnati vs. Arizona 10,000 times and the results are in. The model is leaning Under, and it's also generated a point-spread pick that is hitting in almost 70% of simulations. You can only see the pick at SportsLine.
So who wins Cincinnati vs. Arizona? And which side of the spread hits almost 70% of the time? Visit SportsLine to see which side of the Arizona vs. Cincinnati spread to jump on, all from the advanced model that is up over $1,200 on its college basketball picks the last six years, and find out.
