Columbia Lions vs California Golden Bears Prediction, 12/21/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Columbia Lions vs California Golden Bears

Date: Sunday, December 21, 2025

Location: Haas Pavilion in Berkeley, CA

TV: ACC Extra

Haas Pavilion is the location where the California Golden Bears (10-1) will try to defeat the Columbia Lions (9-2) on Sunday.

The Columbia Lions faced off with Stony Brook and took a loss by a final of 77-73 in their last contest. Columbia ended with a 36.2% FG percentage (25 of 69) and converted 8 of their 31 three-point attempts. At the charity stripe, the Lions converted 15 of 19 attempts for a percentage of 78.9%. When talking about grabbing rebounds, they collected 42 with 14 of them being on the offensive end. They also recorded 16 dimes for the contest in addition to forcing the opposition into 15 turnovers and earning 11 steals. In relation to defending, Columbia allowed the other team to shoot 41.8% from the floor on 28 out of 67 shooting. Stony Brook totaled 16 assists and had 9 steals for the matchup. Moreover, Stony Brook pulled down 32 rebounds (8 offensive, 24 defensive), but couldn't earn a rejection. Stony Brook finished the game at 66.7% at the free throw line by knocking down 14 of 21 attempts. They made 7 of their 21 tries from 3-point land. When talking about fouls, the Lions ended up finishing with 17 and Stony Brook recorded 15 fouls.

Kenny Noland is a guy who was a major contributor in the game. He walked away with 24 points on 6 of 14 shooting. He played 39 minutes played and pulled down 4 rebounds. He finished shooting 42.9% from the field and earned 9 assists.

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Columbia enters this game with a win-loss record of 9-2 so far this year. They cough up possession 13.9 times per game and as a group they commit 16.5 personal fouls per game. As a unit, Columbia is grabbing 44.1 boards per contest and is sitting with 180 dimes so far this year, which ranks 116th in D-1 in terms of passing. The Lions are hitting 38.0% on 3-point shots (98 of 258) and 72.7% from the charity stripe. They have an average of 80.5 pts per contest (123rd in the country) while connecting on 48.7% from the floor.

Defensively, the Lions have forced 10.5 turnovers every game while drawing 15.4 personal fouls. They are conceding 30.0% on 3-point shots and they rank 44th in D-1 in opponents PPG (66.6). The Lions defensively are giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 40.0% (265 of 663) and they surrender 29.8 rebounds per game as a unit. They currently rank 127th in D-1 in allowing assists to the opposition with 143 relinquished for the season.

The last time they took the hardwood, the California Golden Bears got the win with a final of 79-70 when they faced Northwestern State. In reference to how they rebounded, California permitted Northwestern State to get 25 in total (4 on the offensive glass). They finished the game shooting 45.8% from beyond the perimeter by hitting 11 out of 24 and walked away from this one shooting 13 out of 15 from the charity stripe (86.7%). The Golden Bears permitted Northwestern State to make 23 out of 51 attempts from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 45.1% in the matchup. Overall, the Golden Bears went 25 for 55 from the floor which gave them a rate of 45.5%. When talking about 3-pointers, California converted 12 of 26 attempts (46.2%). They were able to make 17 of the free throw tries for a rate of 81.0%. Northwestern State had 18 personal fouls in this game which took the Golden Bears to the charity stripe for 21 shots. They coughed up the ball 11 times, while recording 8 steals in the game. The Golden Bears were able to corral 23 defensive boards and 6 offensive boards totaling 29 in the game.

John Camden was important for the Golden Bears for this game. He made 7 of 11 in this game for a field goal rate of 63.6%, and added 3 rebounds. He recorded 25 points in his 36 mins on the court and accounted for 2 assists for the game.

California has a win-loss record of 10-1 for the campaign. When it comes to offense, the Golden Bears are hitting on 47.0% from the floor, which is ranked 110th in D-1. California has scored 909 pts on the season (82.6 per contest) and they snag 36.2 rebounds per contest. They are earning an assist 15.0 times per contest (152nd in D-1) and they lose possession by turning the ball over 10.5 times per game. The Golden Bears commit 17.3 fouls every game while shooting 76.9% from the free throw line.

The Golden Bears are ranked 90th in college in points per game surrendered with 69.2. They are forcing 13.1 turnovers per game and have allowed teams to shoot 40.9% from the floor (72nd in college). The California defense concedes 32.9% on 3-pointers (84 of 255) and opponents are connecting on 68.1% of their free throw attempts. They have given up 13.7 dimes and 34.9 total boards per game, which is 207th and 195th in college.

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take California

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