#717/718 ASA TOP PLAY ON 10* Under 135 Points – UCLA vs Michigan State, Thursday at 10 PM ET - The Bruins step into this game as one of the slowest teams in the country ranking 332nd in tempo. MSU was one of the slower paced teams in the Big 10 (9th) and they sit in the middle of the pack nationally. However, they have no problem playing a slow down game and that’s what we expect tonight as UCLA gets the tempo they prefer. Neither team takes or makes many 3-pointers with both ranking outside the top 250 in percentage of points from beyond the arc. That’s always something we look at when taking an UNDER. Limit points from beyond the arc = lower scoring game. MSU is not a good shooting team period. They ranked 13th in the Big 10 in offensive efficiency, 3-point percentage, and eFG percentage. Down the stretch Sparty was held under 60 points in 3 of their final 5 games and only reached 1.00 points per possession once in their final 5. They averaged just 64 PPG in Big 10 play and only topped 70 points 6 times in 21 conference games including the tournament. The Bruins had better offensive numbers averaging 71 PPG in Pac 12 play but keep in mind that conference has nowhere near the defensive prowess the Big 10 has. In fact, MSU ranked 8th overall in Big 10 defensive efficiency (all games) but 32nd nationally. The Spartans defensive numbers were good enough to rank 3rd in the Pac 12 right on par with Colorado (29th nationally) and USC (19th nationally), the top 2 defensive teams in that league. In UCLA’s 4 games vs those 2 opponents, the combined scores were 114, 127, 127, and 131 points. This one will be played in the 60’s and we like the UNDER.