Tuesday’s college basketball betting board features an annual March formality, as the No. 1 Gonzaga Bulldogs play in the final of the WCC Tournament for the 24th straight season against the No. 2 BYU Cougars inside the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas.
Gonzaga won both matchups with Brigham Young handily this season, but funny enough pushed with the double-digit points spread (-11 and -17) in both games. The Bulldogs opened the postseason by blasting St. Mary’s 78-55 as 18-point chalk while the Cougars escaped an overtime affair with Pepperdine Monday.
Check out our NCAA basketball betting free picks and predictions for BYU vs. Gonzaga on March 9.
BYU vs Gonzaga odds
Sharp money and line movement report
By Patrick EversonGonzaga is up to a 14.5-point favorite at TwinSpires, after opening -13.5, as bettors have little issue laying the big number in the WCC championship game. As of 8:15 p.m. ET, 45 minutes before tipoff, the Bulldogs are grabbing 77 percent of tickets and 83 percent of money on the spread. The total is out to 157 from a 154.5 opener, with 70 percent of tickets/77 percent of cash on the Over.
Check out the full line movement for this game.BYU Cougars at Gonzaga Bulldogs betting preview
Injuries
BYU: None.
Gonzaga: None.
Find our latest NCAA basketball injury reports.
Betting trend to know
The Under is 13-7 in the past 20 matchups between Brigham Young and Gonzaga. Find more NCAA betting trends for BYU vs. Gonzaga.
Against the spread (ATS) pick
Another stellar showing is the only thing that stands between Gonzaga and the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament. Brigham Young has been a thorn in the Bulldogs’ side at times, especially Bulldogs bettors who watched BYU’s second-half surges ruin their promising wagers in those two 2021 regular-season meetings.
The Cougars are coming off the late shift versus Pepperdine in the West Coast Conference semifinals, overcoming 21 turnovers and a down night from beyond the arc (7 for 21) to sneak out an 82-77 victory in the extra frame. Some of those issues, however, could be due to accumulated rust, with BYU having to wait 10 days before the conference postseason tipped off.
The Cougars are playing their best basketball of the season at the right time, capping the WCC schedule with six wins in the final seven games (82-71 loss at Gonzaga was the only blemish) and posting a 4-2-1 ATS count in that stretch.
Brigham Young’s size is a tall task for the Zags, who love to score points in the paint. The Cougars are one of the tallest teams in the country, and their frontcourt ranks among the most effective with a +2.5 rating at KenPom.com. They won the rebound battle 42-34 over Pepperdine and posted three blocks in the OT win, averaging almost four blocks per game in their last three contests overall.
The beef in the BYU interior will push Gonzaga to the outside, where it shot 5 for 15 in the semifinal win over the Gaels. The Zags were 6 for 18 from distance in their most recent meeting with BYU on February 8 and shot a collective 21 for 60 from 3-point range in their final WCC regular-season outings.
There will be plenty of points on the table for BYU after Monday’s close call, especially once the public plays into the odds for the WCC final. If you’re on the Cougars, you may want to wait it out and see how high this spread goes before pulling the trigger.
PREDICTION: BYU +13 (-115)
Over/Under Pick
Brigham Young can’t afford to let Gonzaga get the engine revving in the WCC final and must turn this matchup into a bit of a brawl. The Cougars did a good job adjusting their lineup to match the Zags’ tempo back on February 8, but a slow-and-slogging approach can keep them within striking distance – or at least inside the spread.
Both programs sit Top 25 in adjusted defensive efficiency (Gonzaga No. 7 and BYU No. 25) but the Cougars run a much more methodical pace, chewing up nearly 17 seconds per possession – three seconds fewer than the Bulldogs.
Gonzaga and BYU stayed Under the total in both matchups this season. The Cougars would have gone Under the number against Pepperdine if not for the overtime period and the Zags played Under in their semifinal victory over St. Mary’s on Monday.
PREDICTION: Under 155 (-110)
BYU vs Gonzaga betting card
- BYU +13 (-115)
- Under 155 (-110)
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