Houston vs. Gonzaga: Picks, Predictions and Odds

Something has to give. Gonzaga, the No. 8 seed in the Midwest Region, has reached the NCAA Tournament’s Round of 16 a record-tying nine straight times. Houston, the top seed and the Bulldogs’ opponents on Saturday evening, has made it to the second weekend five years in a row.

The two consistent performers meet up in a second-round match-up in Wichita tonight at 8:40 p.m. ET.

This is the third straight NCAA Tournament where the Cougars have been a No. 1 seed, and they proved it Thursday, pounding SIU-Edwardsville, 78-40. Milos Uzan had 16 points and L.J. Cryer added 15 to pace four Houston players in double figures in the dominating performance. 

Coach Kelvin Sampson’s squad shot 61.3% in jumping out to a 28-point halftime lead and never looked back. Sampson, in his 11th year at the helm, has led Houston to seven straight NCAA Tournament berths. He’s looking to get his team back to the national semifinals for the first time since 2021.

Meanwhile, Gonzaga, in its lowest seeding in nearly a decade, won a first round game for the 16th straight year by handling No. 9 seed Georgia, 89-68. The Bulldogs raced out to a 30-5 lead as Khalif Battle scored a game-high 24 points and grabbed eight rebounds to lead coach Mark Few’s team. 

Braden Huff had 18 points and eight rebounds for Gonzaga, followed by Nolan Hickman with 18 points as well, and Ryan Nembhard, who dished out eight assists. Nembhard leads the country with 9.8 assists per game. The team shot 60% (12-for-20) from beyond the arc.

Houston vs. Gonzaga betting picks and predictions

Gonzaga +5.5 (-110)

It’s a matchup of ideologies as Gonzaga ranks second in the country in scoring at 86.7 points per game while Houston ranks first in the country in scoring defense, allowing less than 58 points per contest.

Conversely, the Cougars rank fourth in the country in 3-point shooting, making nearly 41% of their attempts from long range, while the Bulldogs rank in the top 15 in the nation in three-point defense. 

Both teams are hot. The Bulldogs have won five straight, including the West Coast Conference tournament, and 10-of-11 overall. Graham Ike leads the team with 17 points and 7.4 rebounds per game, followed by Battle, who is averaging 13.5 points on the season and 15.3 points in his last 10 games. Hickman and Huff are both contributing 11 points each time out. 

The Cougars have been even more dominant, winning 14 straight contests. They easily won the Big 12 regular season title before dispatching Colorado, BYU, and Arizona to take the conference tournament title. In fact, the team’s only loss since November was a one-point overtime setback to Texas Tech last month. Houston is 31-4 overall while winning 27 of its past 28 contests.

Cryer leads the Cougars with 15.2 points per game, followed by Uzan (11.6 ppg), Emanuel Sharp (12.5 ppg), and J’Wan Roberts, who is averaging 10.7 points and a team-high 6.2 rebounds. Roberts missed the last two games of the Big 12 Conference Tournament before logging 20 minutes Thursday. 

Our experts expect this to be a second-round dogfight. Both teams are playing at the top of their games. With Nembhard and Ike clicking, and Battle averaging 18.8 points and shooting 44.4% on three-point attempts, we’re looking for the Bulldogs to at least keep the final result within reach.

Look for Gonzaga to cover the 5.5-point spread as underdogs.

Over 139.5 Total Points (-110)

Gonzaga has played to the over 21 times in 34 games this season, including four of its last five contests. Houston, exemplifying their stinginess on defense, has played to the over just 12 times in 35 games. Again, something has to give.

With this a big-time matchup, our experts expect the pace to be flowing. Even if Houston keeps Gonzaga a ways from their 86.7-point season average, we still think the final scoreboard will be more in the Bulldogs’ neighborhood than the Cougars’.

Look for Gonzaga and Houston to play to the over tonight.

Read more College Basketball betting picks and predictions on site.

Houston vs. Gonzaga odds

Houston	-230
Gonzaga	+190
Spread	Houston -5.5
Total	O/U 139.5

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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.