California Golden Bears vs Miami Hurricanes Prediction, 1/31/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: California Golden Bears vs Miami Hurricanes

Date: Saturday, January 31, 2026

Location: Watsco Center in Coral Gables, FL

TV: ACC Network

Watsco Center is the location where the Miami Hurricanes (17-4) will go up against the California Golden Bears (15-6) on Saturday.

The California Golden Bears faced Florida State and walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 63-61 in their last game. When it comes to fouls, the Golden Bears ended up with 19 while Florida State racked up 16 fouls. They buried 6 of 28 tries from distance. Florida State shot 52.4% from the charity stripe by burying 11 of their 21 attempts. Furthermore, Florida State grabbed 37 rebounds (11 offensive, 26 defensive), but wasn't able to record a block. Florida State recorded 11 assists and had 5 steals in this game. In reference to defense, California allowed the other team to go 36.5% from the field on 23 of 63 shooting. They also distributed 8 assists for this game in addition to forcing the other team into 6 turnovers and earning 3 steals. Regarding grabbing boards, they compiled 40 with 7 of them being offensive. At the free throw line, the Golden Bears buried 11 of 15 attempts for a rate of 73.3%. California walked away from the game with a 34.5% FG percentage (20 of 58) and converted 10 of 28 shots from 3-point land.

Justin Pippen is a guy who was a contributor for this contest. He ended up walking away with 19 points on 5 of 13 shooting. He played 31 minutes played and also totaled 8 boards. He went 38.5% from the floor and distributed 3 dimes.

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California enters this matchup with a record of 15-6 for the campaign. They have an average of 77.9 pts per contest (146th in the country) while hitting 44.5% from the field. The Golden Bears are shooting 36.5% on shots from downtown (189 of 518) and 79.0% from the free throw line. As a team, California is pulling in 35.0 rebounds per contest and has accumulated 294 dimes so far this season, which ranks 198th in the country in terms of passing the ball. They are turning it over 10.0 times per contest and as a team they commit 18.5 personal fouls per contest.

When they are on defense, the Golden Bears are forcing 11.7 turnovers on a nightly basis and they draw 18.5 personal fouls. They give up 29.6% on three-point shots while they are 83rd in college in points per game allowed (69.9). The Golden Bears are giving up a FG percentage of 41.1% (513 of 1,249) and they surrender 36.8 boards per game as a group. They are ranked 233rd in D-1 in allowing assists to their opponents with 292 surrendered for the year.

When they last played, the Miami Hurricanes got the victory with a final of 79-70 when they played Stanford. The Hurricanes were able to corral 21 defensive boards and 11 offensive boards for a total of 32 for the matchup. They coughed up the ball 8 times, while getting 8 steals in this matchup. Stanford committed 22 personal fouls in this matchup which took the Hurricanes to the free throw line for 31 shots. They were able to make 19 of those for a percentage of 61.3%. With respect to shooting from downtown, Miami buried 6 out of their 15 tries (40.0%). In all, the Hurricanes finished the game shooting 27 for 57 from the floor which gave them a rate of 47.4%. The Hurricanes permitted Stanford to make 27 out of 62 tries from the field which left them shooting 43.5% for this game. They finished shooting 45.8% from three-point range by connecting on 11 of 24 and ended up shooting 5 of 10 at the free throw line (50.0%). In regard to team rebounding, Miami permitted Stanford to pull down 27 in total (10 on the offensive glass).

Malik Reneau was important for the Hurricanes for this contest. He had 20 points in his 28 mins of playing time and accounted for 3 dimes for the contest. He knocked down 6 out of 10 in this game for a field goal rate of 60.0%, and totaled 5 rebounds.

Miami has a mark of 17-4 for the season. The Hurricanes are responsible for committing 16.4 fouls every game while shooting 68.8% from the charity stripe. They are dishing out assists 17.6 times per game (30th in Division 1) and they turn it over 11.7 times per contest. Miami has accounted for 1,778 pts so far this year (84.7 per contest) and they grab 38.8 rebounds per contest. As an offensive team, the Hurricanes are connecting on 50.9% from the field, which ranks 13th in the nation.

The Miami defense surrenders 35.1% on shots from beyond the arc (169 of 482) and opponents are converting on 66.0% of their shots from the free throw line. They have conceded 13.2 dimes and 29.8 boards every game, which ranks 172nd and 9th in those categories. The Hurricanes on defense are ranked 71st in the country in PPG given up with 69.3. They are forcing 13.9 turnovers on a nightly basis and allow teams to shoot 42.8% from the field (130th in Division 1).

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take California

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