The No. 1 Gonzaga Bulldogs will face another light opponent in the West Coast Conference (WCC) with the Pacific Tigers coming to Spokane on Saturday. The Bulldogs can’t afford to be bored, though, and take things for granted right now, as Pacific is a team that can claw and bite. The Bulldogs are +750 to win the national title.
Betting on the Pacific Tigers (15-6 Overall / 3-2 Conference)
It’s Pacific’s time to try to deal the Bulldogs their first loss in conference play. The Tigers, however, couldn’t even handle their business against the Santa Clara Broncos in an 84-80 road loss last Saturday. The Tigers will have a date first with the BYU Cougars this Thursday at home, and that game should be a nice barometer for how well Pacific will face against the West Coast Conference bullies that are the Bulldogs. Like Gonzaga, BYU has a sizzling offense that can light it up against most opponents. But if Pacific will have any chance of at least covering the spread against the Bulldogs, it needs Jahlil Tripp to be on top of his game. Tripp leads the Tigers this season with 15.4 points and 8.3 rebounds. He shoots 52.1 percent from the field and clearly will be a focus of Gonzaga’s defense, which is also why guard Justin Moore needs to resurface. Moore is Pacific’s second-leading scorer with 10.1 points per game, but has scored only 13 points over the last three Tigers outings.
The Tigers, who can play excellent defense in the paint with 5.6 block percentage (fifth in the nation), are 7-3 against the spread (ATS) in their last 10 road games.
Betting on the Gonzaga Bulldogs (20-1 Overall / 6-0 Conference)
The Bulldogs could not be stopped in conference play. They notched their sixth-straight win in WCC play and 12th overall with a 92-69 thrashing of the Cougars last Saturday. With no games between that and this weekend’s meeting with Pacific for the Bulldogs, Gonzaga is going to be a well-rested team when it takes on the Tigers. Rest is something the Bulldogs seemingly don’t need much of, as talent alone could lead them past Pacific, which shouldn’t be able to match Gonzaga’s depth. The Bulldogs have seven players averaging at least 9.4 points per game. The Bulldogs have the best offense in the nation per KenPom, with 118.0 points per 100 possessions. Gonzaga is tops overall, too, with 88.8 points per game. Gonzaga’s rebounding should be highlighted against the smaller Pacific team. Gonzaga is third in the nation in average height (78.8 inches), while Pacific is 127th (77.2).
The over is 6-1 in the Bulldogs’ last seven home games.
