Gonzaga at Santa Clara – Take the Broncos and the Points

BetOnline NCAA Basketball Betting Odds: GONZAGA -10

Here are some of the NCAA basketball online betting trends as they relate to this matchup:

* GONZ has won 13 of its last 14 games SU

* GONZ has played five of its last six games OVER the total

* GONZ has won its last six road games SU

* GONZ has played its last six road games OVER the total

* SC has won seven of its last nine games SU

* SC has covered two of its last six games

* SC has won its last five home games SU

* SC is 4-2-1 ATS in its last seven home games

* SC has played four of its last five home games UNDER the total

Also…

* GONZ has won 18 of the last 19 meetings SU

* Eleven of the last 12 meetings have gone OVER the total

* GONZ has won the last seven meetings SU as the road team

* The last four meetings in Santa Clara have gone OVER the total

* GONZ has had the shooting edge in four of the last five meetings

* GONZ has had the rebounding edge in five of the last seven meetings

Santa Clara has had a pretty tough schedule, and that has contributed to its so-so record. The Broncos have had non-conference tilts with the likes of Arizona, San Jose State, UAB, UNLV, Stanford and UTEP, and there was a four-game losing streak to start the West Coast Conference season, as they lost to Saint Mary’s, San Diego, Gonzaga and Portland, before a six-game winning streak that included payback victories over San Diego and Saint Mary’s. Santa Clara has slipped in a couple of games against Pepperdine and San Francisco that they should have been able to win, and that is what leaves them thinking that the only way they’re going to get into post-season play is to rack up an upset in the WCC tournament.

Gonzaga has taken no prisoners this season en route to what will be a perfect conference record if they can win their final two against Santa Clara and San Diego. The Bulldogs were embarrassed in their 68-50 loss to Memphis on February 7, but they have come back with four straight wins, which is to their credit. Near the beginning of the conference slate, they hosted Santa Clara at Spokane and walked all over the Broncos, getting out to a 52-29 halftime lead and cruising home to a 95-53 win. The ‘Zags shot 55%, had five players in double figures, and held Santa Clara to 36% from the field.

That kind of shellacking has been the exception rather than the rule. Incredibly, Santa Clara has been the victim of a bad break here or there that could have made a tremendous difference in its record. Of the Broncos’ 15 losses, twelve of them have been by six points or less. At home they have a pretty solid 10-4 SU record, and that is where the win over Saint Mary’s took place. John Bryant, the big center who had just 12 points in that first Gonzaga game, has averaged 19.5 points and 16.9 rebounds since.

This time around, the Bulldogs will have a lot more difficulty creating some distance between themselves and their opponent. We’re taking the points with Santa Clara, the 10-point underdog in the BetOnline NCAA basketball odds.

JAY’S PLAY: SANTA CLARA +10 ***

(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)

(Charles Jay makes his share of shots from downtown as a contributor to the BetOnline Locker Room)