The No. 1 Gonzaga Bulldogs will take on the Portland Pilots in search of their 11th win of the season. The Pilots are looking like a deer on Gonzaga’s headlights, but can they at least cover the spread? Check out our preview of this West Coast Conference game along with our winner and final score predictions below.
Gonzaga is just destroying the competition at the West Coast Conference. The Bulldogs nailed their 11th win in a row last Thursday by mopping the floor with the BYU Cougars in an 86-69 home win. Outside of the West Virginia Mountaineers, no team has really come close to beating Gonzaga. The Kansas Jayhawks, Iowa Hawkeyes, and the Virginia Cavaliers all lost to Gonzaga by an average margin of 15.3 points. Gonzaga’s offense is proven, and it’s a lock to score a ton against Portland’s defense that is ranked as among the worst in the nation. Portland is 295th overall with 79.1 points allowed per game. As for Gonzaga, its offense is second nationally with an average of 94.3 points per game. The Bulldogs are also bound to physically dominate Portland. Gonzaga’s average height is two inches more than Portland’s.
Gonzaga is 3-1-1 against the spread in its last five games.
Portland will have to borrow Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum from the Trail Blazers in order for them to beat Gonzaga. But the Pilots don’t need to bend the rules to cover the spread against the Bulldogs. Portland, which lost to the San Francisco Dons, 88-64, on the road last Thursday, has covered the spread in seven of their last 10 meetings with Gonzaga. In addition, the Pilots are 3-0 against the spread in their last three games against Gonzaga. Last year, Portland lost to the Bulldogs by only 13 points (85-72), easily covering the spread as a 23.5-point home underdog. Portland will lean on senior guard Ahmed Ali and junior shooting guard Isiah Dasher, who are averaging 18.4 and 11.2 points per game, respectively.
Portland, which is averaging just 68.6 points per game, has seen the total hit the over in both of its last two contests.
