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The Santa Clara Broncos take on the Gonzaga Bulldogs. Check out our college basketball odds series for our Santa Clara Gonzaga prediction and pick. Find how to watch Santa Clara Gonzaga.
West Coast Conference college basketball has been different this year. The Saint Mary's Gaels and Gonzaga Bulldogs occupy the top two spots in the WCC — that's not different — but what's new is that Saint Mary's has been perfect in the conference, at 13-0. Gonzaga is two games behind the Gaels and might not share the WCC championship, something it has regularly done for most of the past 20 years. Gonzaga might not always win the outright conference title, but not even getting a split title would rate as a huge disappointment.
Gonzaga knows entering this game that it must win the rest of its games — including a road game at Saint Mary's — and get one other additional SMC loss to share the WCC championship. It's must-win territory for the Zags for the next few weeks. Gonzaga also needs to win to increase the chances that it will get an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. Gonzaga is more likely than not to get in, but a loss to Santa Clara could really complicate matters. Gonzaga needs to put its foot on the gas and leave no doubt that it deserves an at-large bid.
Another plot point in this game is that Santa Clara beat Gonzaga earlier this season on the Broncos' home court in California. That was Santa Clara's first win over the Zags since 2011. Gonzaga will want to avoid a sweep loss in the season series and remind the Broncos who's boss.
Here are the Santa Clara-Gonzaga College Basketball odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
College Basketball Odds: Santa Clara-Gonzaga Odds
Santa Clara Broncos: +12.5 (-102)
Gonzaga Bulldogs: -12.5 (-120)
Over: 156.5 (-110)
Under: 156.5 (-110)
How To Watch Santa Clara vs Gonzaga
Time: 10:00 pm ET / 7:00 pm PT
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TV: ESPNU
Stream: fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why Santa Clara Could Cover the Spread
The Broncos have beaten Gonzaga once. They can beat Gonzaga twice. Yet, even if they don't win this game outright, they can lose by 12 and still cover. They will play an inspired game which will enable them to remain competitive. This is not one of Gonzaga's better teams in recent years. The Zags might have just enough lapses to keep Santa Clara close. Santa Clara is the fourth-place team in the WCC, a decent team. The gap between these sides is not huge. It's modest. Gonzaga is better, but not by that large a margin.
Why Gonzaga Could Cover the Spread
The Zags lost to Santa Clara on the road. Now they get the Broncos at home. Revenge is on the menu, and Gonzaga will be motivated to not only win, but win very big. Gonzaga's big men have begun to play really well in recent weeks, with the turning point being the win against Kentucky in Rupp Arena a few weeks ago. That game really seemed to give Gonzaga a sense that it could evolve as a team and reach a higher ceiling. Gonzaga will play a high-level game here, and that will be enough to cover.
Final Santa Clara-Gonzaga Prediction & Pick
Santa Clara got the better of Gonzaga once, but it won't happen twice. Gonzaga is a lot better than it was the last time it played Santa Clara, and GU will be very motivated to atone for its loss to the Broncos. This will be a blowout.
Final Santa Clara-Gonzaga Prediction & Pick: Gonzaga -12.5
