Utah State vs UCLA basketball Injury report and predictions, March 20: Latest on Evan Manjikian and more

Utah State vs UCLA will take place on Thursday at 9:25 p.m. ET. With the First Four in the books, the first round of the NCAA Tournament tips off on Thursday. The No. 7-ranked UCLA Bruins and No. 10-ranked Utah State Aggies will play one of the last contests of the first day of the first round.

Heading into the matchup, the Bruins will be favored to come out on top, but it should be a tight contest between two closely matched teams. One thing that could be a factor is the injury report. Utah State is fortunate to have a healthy roster, whereas UCLA has a few injuries.

Utah State vs UCLA basketball injuries

Christian Horry, UCLA

One player on the injury report for the UCLA Bruins is Christian Horry, who suffered an undisclosed injury in February and is still listed as questionable to return on the injury report. However, as a freshman, he was not a rotational member of the roster before his injury. He had not gotten into a game, and as a result, he was unlikely to have contributed to this matchup, regardless of injury.

Evan Manjikian, UCLA

Evan Manjikian first appeared in games for UCLA in the 2023 season but has not suited up since because of various injuries. This season, an arm injury early in the year held him out of the lineup. He is still listed as questionable with that setback for Utah State vs UCLA. However, even if he is healthy, he is not expected to play because he has not played games all year.

Utah State vs UCLA basketball prediction

Utah State vs UCLA is a mostly healthy matchup. As a result, the sportsbooks are able to set the odds without factoring in injuries. UCLA is a -230 favorite, and Utah State is a +190 underdog in the first round of March Madness.

Utah State is coming off a loss to Colorado State in the semifinals of the Mountain West Tournament. Before that, the Aggies had won two games in a row. Conversely, UCLA is coming off a loss to Wisconsin in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament. Before the loss, the Bruins won their last two regular-season games.

Neither team has done anything exceptional positively or negatively in their most recent games. As a result, we see no reason to bet against the favorite. We predict that UCLA will defeat Utah State on Thursday.

Prediction: UCLA 77, Utah State 71