The 2026 NCAA Tournament continues with a must-see second-round contest on Sunday night, as the No. 1 seed Arizona Wildcats face the No. 9 Utah State Aggies in the West Region. After winning the Big 12 Tournament, the Wildcats easily handled LIU in the first round of March Madness by a score of 92-58. USU claimed the Mountain West Tournament and then defeated No. 8 seed Villanova by 10 points in the NCAA Tournament to reach the second round. Utah State owns the 3-1 edge in the all-time matchups between the programs. The Aggies are seeking their first Sweet 16 appearance since 1970.

Tipoff from the Viejas Arena in San Diego is at 7:50 p.m. ET. Arizona won the last meeting in 2005. The Wildcats are 11.5-point favorites in the latest Arizona vs. Utah State odds, while the over/under is 153.5, a 2-point drop from opening at 155.5. Zona is at -714 on the money line (risk $714 to win $100). Before making any Utah State vs. Arizona picks, check out the Arizona vs. Utah State predictions from the SportsLine Projection Model.

The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every college basketball game 10,000 times. It entered the 2026 NCAA Tournament on a sizzling 11-1 run on its top-rated over/under college basketball picks dating back to last season, and is on a 28-22 run on top-rated CBB side picks. 

Now, the model has simulated Utah State vs. Arizona 10,000 times and just revealed its college basketball picks and predictions. You can head to SportsLine now to see the model’s picks. Here are several college basketball odds and college basketball lines for Arizona vs. Utah State:

Top Arizona vs. Utah State predictions

After 10,000 simulations of Utah State vs. Arizona, SportsLine’s model is going Over on the total (153.5 points). Both squads have seen the Over hit more often than the Under this season, with the two seeing the Over go a combined 38-31. The total has been eclipsed in 60% of Utah State road/neutral-site contests, while the Over is 5-1 for Arizona when facing a team that allows between 67 and 72 ppg, as the Aggies do.

Additionally, the Over has hit in each of the last three Arizona games, while it is 6-3 over Utah State’s last nine games overall. A total of nine players are forecasted to score more than 9 points, with three of them surpassing 15 points, as the teams combine for 157 points per 10,000 simulations. That allows the Over to hit 55.1% of the time. You can get the spread pick at SportsLine.

How to make Utah State vs. Arizona picks

Now, the model simulated every possession of Arizona vs. Utah State 10,000 times and says one side of the spread hits nearly 60% of the time. You can only see that pick at SportsLine.

So who wins Utah State vs. Arizona, and which side of the spread hits nearly 60% of the time? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the Arizona vs. Utah State spread to back, all from the advanced model that just simulated this game 10,000 times, and find out.

Former India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin reckons that senior Mumbai Indians (MI) batter Suryakumar Yadav might be slightly disappointed at not having been appointed captain of the franchise for IPL 2026. According to Ashwin, India’s T20 World Cup-winning captain would definitely be harboring hope of leading a franchise in the IPL.

Five-time champions MI appointed all-rounder Hardik Pandya as captain for the IPL 2024 season, replacing Rohit Sharma. Under him, Mumbai reached the playoffs last year, but went down to Punjab Kings (PBKS) in Qualifier 2. MI have retained Pandya as captain for the upcoming IPL season, even though they were mixed views among experts over his leadership.

During a discussion on his YouTube show Ash ki baat, Ashwin made a big claim and stated that Suryakumar would have been keen on leading MI. He commented:

“If you individualistically look at this, Surya will be saying, ‘I should also be the captain of an IPL franchise’. I think Surya will be thinking like that. It’s only human to think like that because he has just won a World Cup as a captain. But, for Surya the batter, it is just let loose and enjoy. Last year also he had a pretty decent time.”

Sharing his personal views on MI’s captaincy, Ashwin opined that Suryakumar should have been handed over the reins of the franchise. He commented:

“In my view, Suryakumar Yadav being the captain of Mumbai Indians is a no-brainer. He should be given the captaincy. And the fact that that is not happening, I am sure, is a bit of a concern.”

Suryakumar impressed as captain as India won T20 World Cup 2026, losing only one game. The 35-year-old, however, disappointed with the bat, scoring 242 runs in nine innings at an average of 30.25 and a strike rate of 136.72.

“A lot of things can go through his mind” – R Ashwin on challenge for Hardik Pandya as MI captain

Sharing his thoughts on Pandya as captain, Ashwin opined that he has the credentials to be a good leader. He pointed out to the all-rounder’s impressive record as Gujarat Titans (GT) skipper. The former cricketer, however, added that Pandya has had to face multiple challenges since taking over as MI captain, which have made things tough for him. He elaborated:

“If we look at Hardik Pandya, as the Gujarat Titans’ captain, had a title in his first season and was a runner-up in the second season. When he came to Mumbai, the expectation was that he will be the captain and continue the trend. But it took him a year to handle Rohit Sharma and all those sagas.

“Now, he is having to compete with this lot of people telling him that Suryakumar Yadav is the incumbent Indian team captain, but Hardik is the captain of Mumbai. It is a very challenging thing. A lot of things can go through his mind.” Ashwin concluded.

MI will begin their IPL 2026 campaign with a match against three-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday, March 29.