Bulldogs on 10-Game Winning Streak
The No. 8 Gonzaga Bulldogs try to win an 11th straight game when they meet the Portland Pilots for a West Coast Conference contest on Saturday night. Gonzaga is perfect in conference play, sitting in a first-place tie in the WCC with Saint Mary’s. Portland snapped a five-game losing streak with a home win over San Francisco on Thursday but is currently eighth in the league standings. This may seem like an easy pick to make, but make sure you read our in-depth preview of this game before you make any bet online.
Let’s check the latest college basketball odds, stats, injury reports and college basketball lines for Portland vs Gonzaga. We’ve plenty of NCAA basketball odds for you to consider.
Portland Finds Its Offense In Win
The Portland Pilots had been struggling offensively in conference play, but that changed on Thursday night against San Francisco, as they tallied 92 points. Portland had scored just 43 points in its previous game, a loss to Saint Mary’s, but had more than that total by halftime against the Dons.
Junior guard Tyler Robertson led the way with 23 points, five assists and two steals, going 9-for-9 from the free-throw line. Robertson is averaging a team-high 14.6 points and 5.4 assists this season, shooting 30.6% from 3-point range.
Junior forward Moses Wood is scoring 13.6 points per game while leading the Pilots with 6.1 rebounds per contest. For an undersized group, Wood will need to play big against the Bulldogs’ big front line.
Junior Kristian Sjolund will also be counted on to play strong in the paint if the Pilots are going to stay in this game. The 6-8 forward is averaging 13.1 points and 4.8 rebounds per game and had 21 points and 12 rebounds in Thursday’s win.
Gonzaga Playing It Close In League Play
While the Gonzaga Bulldogs are perfect through four games of West Coast Conference play, they’ve been escaping with some narrow victories of late, winning their last three contests by a total of eight points. The Bulldogs were able to pull out a one-point victory at BYU on Thursday thanks to a 3-pointer by guard Julian Strawther with 9.8 seconds to play.
“We were expecting a make (on a BYU free-throw attempt), so I grabbed the rebound and everybody ran the wings, so I had no choice but to bring it down myself,” Strawther said of the game-winning play. “(The defender) just kept going under, kept backing up further and further so I was like, ‘Well, I work on this shot every day. This is all I work on, so I might as well pull it.’”
Strawther had been struggling with his shooting on Thursday, with the game-winner being his second 3-pointer in seven attempts from beyond the arc. He finished with 11 points and eight rebounds and is averaging 13.8 points and 7.3 rebounds while shooting 41.9% from 3-point range.
Forward Drew Timme had another big game with 19 points and 13 rebounds. The senior is ninth in the nation in scoring at 21.7 points per game while also averaging 8.2 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 1.0 blocks while shooting 60.7% from the floor.
Portland vs Gonzaga Game Injuries
Portland vs Gonzaga Head-To-Head
The Gonzaga Bulldogs have dominated the all-time series with the Portland Pilots and are currently on a 14-game winning streak against their conference rivals. Gonzaga is 19-1 at home against Portland, with the only Pilots victory in Spokane, Wash., coming back in February 2003.
The all-time series between the two schools has Gonzaga with a 41-2 record. The college basketball lines for Saturday’s contest are expecting more of the same, with the Bulldogs a major favorite at home.
Portland vs Gonzaga Game Information
- Game: Portland (9-10, 1-3 WCC) vs Gonzaga (15-3, 4-0 WCC)
- Location: McCarthey Athletic Center
- Day/Time: Saturday, Jan 14, 10:00 p.m. ET
- Portland vs Gonzaga Live Stream: ESPN2
Portland vs Gonzaga Betting Lines
Portland vs Gonzaga Pick & Prediction
The Portland Pilots have played well against some good teams, but they have been inconsistent of late. Meanwhile, the Gonzaga Bulldogs are looking for an easy game after three nail-biters and have a major height advantage against the Pilots, so they should take control of this one early and cruise.
When making your college basketball picks, take Gonzaga to win and cover at home.
Portland is listed at +1015 in our Vegas lines. This means that if you wager $100 on Portland, you have a chance to win $1015. Gonzaga is -2015, offering a chance to win $5 on a $100 wager.
The implied probability attached to the betting lines gives Portland an 8.97% chance to win, with Gonzaga at 95.27%.
Portland vs Gonzaga Trends
Portland vs Gonzaga Edge
Portland vs Gonzaga Results
Portland vs Gonzaga Game Summary
