The No.2 Gonzaga Bulldogs (+900 to win the national title) seem to be virtual locks to win the West Coast Conference again this season. They are running out of challengers in the WCC, but they can’t also be too confident heading into a showdown in Santa Clara against the Santa Clara Broncos, who play much better when they’re at home.
Betting on the Gonzaga Bulldogs (21-1 Overall / 7-0 Conference)
One of the most boring things to say in college basketball today is that Gonzaga won another game in conference play. Gonzaga racked up another win last Saturday, crushing the Pacific Tigers in Spokane, 92-59. So masterful and dominant were the Bulldogs that they even managed to cover the 22.5-point spread as home favorites. Gonzaga’s offense is just on another level and when compared to the quality of teams in the West Coast Conference, it feels like it’s from another planet and could not be possibly effectively handled by any opponent in the conference. That includes Santa Clara, which fell to the Bulldogs in Spokane earlier this month, 104-54, with Gonzaga shooting 51.5 percent from the field and dominating the glass, 53-35.
The Bulldogs are 5-0 against the spread (ATS) in their last five games.
Betting on the Santa Clara Broncos (17-5 Overall / 4-3 Conference)
After getting mauled by Gonzaga on Jan. 16, the Broncos went 2-1 straight up (SU) with wins over the Pacific Tigers and San Diego Toreros which sandwiched a loss to the Pepperdine Waves. Santa Clara is having quite like an inconsistent showing in conference play, but where it’s been consistent is in the team’s ability to cover the spread when the Broncos are at home. In fact, the Broncos have covered the spread in four of their last five home games, with the totals hitting the over in all those contests. Santa Clara is averaging 75.2 points per game and allows 71.0 per outing. Freshman Jaden Bediako had 11 points and 10 rebounds in the first meeting with Gonzaga while Josip Vrankic, a junior forward, had 12 points with three 3-pointers. Trey Wertz, the team’s leading scorer with 12.8 points per game average, also had 11 in that loss to Gonzaga.
The Broncos are 9-1 SU in their last 10 home games.
