It wasn’t easy watching the NCAA tournament get nixed last season, but we don’t have to wait until March to get a college basketball betting matchup that is worthy of the Big Dance.
Gonzaga enters tonight’s contest against West Virginia as the number two team in the country and in a match-up reminiscent of tourney time, it’s a neutral site battle as well. What’s not to like?
Let’s settle in for one of the top games on the schedule Wednesday evening and give you our best free picks and predictions for No. 15 West Virginia and No. 2 Gonzaga on December 2, with tipoff set for 7:00 ET at the Jimmy V Classic in Indianapolis, Indiana.
West Virginia Mountaineers vs Gonzaga Bulldogs Betting Preview
Key Injuries
West Virginia: No injuries to report.
Gonzaga: Julian Strawther G (Out), Dominick Harris G (Out).
Find our latest NCAA basketball injury reports.
Betting Trend to Know
The favorite is 3-0-1 ATS in the last 4 meetings. Find more NCAA betting trends for West Virginia vs. Gonzaga.
Against the Spread (ATS) Pick
The Mountaineers may come into this game as underdogs, but West Virginia is lurking just outside of the Top 10 after a 3-0 start and a tournament win at the Bad Boy Mowers Crossover Classic in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. God, does anything go together better than basketball and lawn cutting? Not for my money.
West Virginia outlasted Western Kentucky 70-64 for the tournament title (and hopefully a few bags of fertilizer). Forward Derek Culver has averaged a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds per game for the Mountaineers and they’ll also look to guard Miles McBride to add some scoring punch after he dropped 14 points against the Hilltoppers.
Here’s a question that we ask ourselves every single college basketball season about this time: is this Gonzaga’s year? Mark Few has long proven to be one of the best coaches in the country, but he still lacks that elusive national title ring. The good news for Few and his Zags is that this might actually be the year. No, really.
Gonzaga has come out of the gate swinging, pasting Kansas by 12 points and then following up that performance a night later with a 23-point victory versus Auburn. Sophomore forward Drew Timme has led the Bulldogs thus far with 26.5 points and 8.0 rebounds a game, while senior Corey Kispert’s sharpshooting from outside has added 24 points a contest.
West Virginia plays with a gritty style that is indicative of head coach Bob Huggins. That can frustrate a lot of teams, but Gonzaga is a top team in the country for a reason, and the Zags' depth and talent should help them pull away and cover this number.
PREDICTION: Gonzaga -8.0 (-110)
Over/Under Pick
Gonzaga averages 117.6 points per 100 possessions, which is tops in the KenPom rankings and, amazingly, is a smaller number than what the Bulldogs averaged last season. Still, the Mountaineers would be foolish to try to keep up with the Zags, as their only chance to keep this close is to slow the tempo.
The Under is 19-7-1 in the Mountaineers’ last 27 games overall and I expect that trend to continue with West Virginia doing its best to play physical, defensive basketball.
At the very least, I bet the campus lawn looks immaculate upon their return to Morgantown.
PREDICTION: Under 154.5 (-110)
West Virginia vs Gonzaga Betting Card
- Gonzaga -8.0 (-110)
- Under 154.5 (-110)
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