The Oregon State Beavers (13-18) take on the UCLA Bruins (15-16) for the opening round of the PAC-12 Tournament on Wednesday, March 13 at 5:30 PM ET, at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Bruins are slight favorites with a point spread at -6.5 (-115).

The Beavers are 5-15 in conference action and are 2-3 in their last five games. In their latest defeat, they fell short to the Colorado Buffaloes 73-57 despite Eddie Lamken Jr. having a big game (17 points, 11 rebounds).

Jordan Pope leads them in scoring with 17.6 points per game and ranks 99^th in the nation for this output. With Lamken Jr., they have an opportunity to stun in their first round matchup and keep their chances alive for the big tournament.

The Beavers will need to accumulate more offense, as they only average 69.3 points per game. They are shooting 44.1 percent from the field and move the ball mildly with just 11.1 assists each game.

Their defense is another story, as they allow 72.9 points per game from opposing teams. This is a negative margin when looking at their offense and will likely be an issue here. 

The Bruins just ended their five-game losing streak with a 59-47 win over the Arizona State Sun Devils. Despite the previous losses, they are at least coming into this matchup with positive momentum on their side.

They will need a huge performance out of Adem Bona, who currently leads their scoring output with 12.4 points each game. The problem will be if the team can accumulate over 65 points, which is something they have struggled to do for a majority of the season.

The Bruins barely put up points, as they average 65.9 points per game and are making 41.5 percent of their shots at the basket. Their ball movement is synonymous with the Beavers, showing they are in the same boat as far as efficiency in getting scoring opportunities.

Their defense is slightly more appealing compared to the Beavers, as they are allowing 65.6 points from their opponents. On top of that, it at least shows they have the potential for a positive scoring margin where the Beavers do not.

MyBookie provides the betting odds in this PAC-12  showdown, with the UCLA Bruins as 6.5-point favorites. Looking at market analysis, the Bruins have a 74.6 percent probability for finding success.

The Bruins defeated the Beavers 71-63 back in February and showed that they can succeed here once again. Even with the string of losses lately, the Bruins have a great opportunity to win and cover the spread again over the Beavers.