Gonzaga Bulldogs vs UConn Huskies Prediction, 12/14/2024 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Gonzaga Bulldogs vs UConn Huskies

Date: Saturday, December 14, 2024

Location: Madison Square Garden in New York, NY

TV: ESPN+

Madison Square Garden is the location where the UConn Huskies (7-3) will compete against the Gonzaga Bulldogs (7-2) on Saturday.

The Gonzaga Bulldogs took the court against Kentucky and took a loss by a score of 90-89 in their last contest. With respect to fouls, the Bulldogs ended up finishing with 15 while Kentucky recorded 21 fouls. They made 7 of their 25 shots from distance. Kentucky went 83.3% from the free throw line by converting 15 of their 18 tries. Moreover, Kentucky grabbed 40 rebounds (15 offensive, 25 defensive), but didn't have a block. Kentucky totaled 17 dimes and had 1 steal in this game. When talking about the defense, Gonzaga allowed the other team to go 45.3% from the field on 34 out of 75 shooting. They also recorded 17 dimes for the game in addition to creating 7 turnovers and getting 2 steals. Pertaining to getting rebounds, they collected 39 with 13 of them being of the offensive variety. From the free throw line, the Bulldogs made 17 of 24 attempts for a percentage of 70.8%. Gonzaga ended the contest with a 46.5% field goal percentage (33 of 71) and buried 6 out of their 27 3-point shots.

Graham Ike is someone who was a major contributor for this game. He ended up shooting 56.3% from the floor and recorded 4 dimes. He was on the court for 35 mins and also totaled 11 rebounds. He walked away with 28 points on 9 of 16 shooting.

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Gonzaga will take the court with a record of 7-2 on the season. They average 90.2 points per contest (3rd in Division 1) while connecting on 48.9% from the field. The Bulldogs are connecting on 33.7% on three-point shots (70 of 208) and 81.0% from the free throw line. As a team, Gonzaga is pulling down 41.4 rebounds per game and has totaled 176 dimes on the year, which has them ranked 26th in the nation in terms of passing. They are giving up possession 9.0 times per contest and as a squad are committing 17.2 fouls on a nightly basis.

On the defensive end, the Bulldogs are forcing 12.9 turnovers per contest while drawing 18.8 personal fouls. They are currently ranked 71st in the nation in allowing assists to the opposition with 104 relinquished this year. The Bulldogs are allowing a FG percentage of 40.9% (222 of 543) and they surrender 32.6 rebounds per contest as a unit. They are surrendering 24.9% on shots from distance and they are ranked 128th in D-1 in PPG from their opponents (68.8).

When they last stepped on the court, the UConn Huskies walked away with a victory by a final of 76-65 against Texas. In the matter of cleaning the glass, UConn allowed Texas to grab 22 in all (6 on the offensive glass). They wrapped up this game 47.1% from 3-point land by hitting 8 of 17 and walked away from this one shooting 15 out of 24 at the free throw line (62.5%). The Huskies permitted Texas to knock down 21 of their 50 attempts from the floor which had them at 42.0% in this matchup. When the final whistle blew, the Huskies ended up shooting 28 for 54 from the field which gave them a percentage of 51.9%. When talking about shooting from distance, UConn converted 9 of their 20 attempts (45.0%). They were able to knock down 11 of the free throws for a percentage of 68.8%. Texas had 16 fouls for this contest which took the Huskies to the free throw line for 16 attempts. They coughed up the ball 12 times, while getting 5 steals for the contest. The Huskies collected 23 defensive rebounds and 11 offensive boards totaling 34 in the game.

Alex Karaban was important for the Huskies for the matchup. He made 6 of 14 in the matchup for a field goal rate of 42.9%, and accumulated 11 rebounds. He earned 21 points in his 40 minutes on the hardwood and accumulated 4 dimes in this game.

UConn has a win-loss mark of 7-3 so far this year. When it comes to offense, the Huskies are connecting on 50.4% from the field, which is 13th in college basketball. UConn has tallied 842 pts on the season (84.2 per game) and they collect 37.5 boards per game. They are assisting teammates 20.2 times per contest (3rd in college basketball) and they are turning it over 10.4 times per game. The Huskies have committed 19.7 personal fouls every game while shooting 76.1% from the free throw line.

The UConn defense concedes 37.3% on 3-pointers (63 of 169) and their opponents are making 68.4% of their foul shots. They have conceded 8.8 assists and 28.6 rebounds on a nightly basis, which has them ranked 7th and 6th in college basketball. The Huskies on defense are ranked 34th in the nation in points allowed per contest with 64.3. They are forcing their opponents into 12.6 TO's per game and have let teams shoot 40.4% from the floor (70th in college hoops).

Who will win tonight's NCAA basketball game against the spread?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Gonzaga

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