Last College Basketball Game of 2010: A Look at Oklahoma St-Gonzaga

Oklahoma St Cowboys at Gonzaga Bulldogs, McCarthey Athletic Center, Spokane, WA
Friday, December 31, 2010, 10:00 pm Eastern, TV: ESPN2
Opening Line: Gonzaga -5
Current Total: Gonzaga -7
Opening Total: 138 1/2
Current Total: 140 1/2
Money Line: Gonzaga -300 / Oklahoma St +250

Elias Harris and the Zags are 7 point favorites at home against the Oklahoma St Cowboys.

The 11-1 Oklahoma St Cowboys travel to Spokane to take on the 8-5 Gonzaga Bulldogs. This is the last college basketball of the calendar year. Oklahoma St has a loss to Virginia Tech in a tournament in Anaheim Thanksgiving weekend. They have victories over Depaul, Murray St, Tulsa, Alabama and Stanford on the year. Gonzaga has played a very tough schedule this season with losses to San Diego St, Kansas St, Illinois, Washington St, and Notre Dame on the season. They have wins over Marquette, Baylor, and Xavier. Gonzaga leads the all time series between these teams 3-0. the last time they played was in the first round of the Old Spice Classic in Orlando in 2008. Gonzaga won that meeting 83-71. The Cowboys are 8-18 ATS as underdogs in the last two seasons. They are 12-3 ATS after a non-conference game the last 2 seasons.

Oklahoma St is outscoring opponents 73-62 on the season. The Cowboys are shooting 46.3% from the field and 33.1% from 3 point range. Cowboy opponents are shooting 39.1% from the field. OSU is shooting 71.7% from the free throw line. Forward Marshall Moses is the teams leading scorer with 17.3 ppg and also averages 8.4 rebounds a game. Junior guard Keiton Page is averaging 15.8 ppg along with 2.1 rebounds and and 2.3 assists a game. Darrell Williams leads the team in rebounds with 8.6 a game. Ray Penn leads the team in assists with 2.9 a game. The Cowboys pull down 37.7 rebounds a game and have a rebounding margin of +6.9. The Cowboys average 11.4 assists and 14.3 turnovers a game. The Cowboys force 14.5 turnovers a game on defense. The Cowboys average 6.2 steals and 3 blocks a game.

Gonzaga is outscoring opponents 78-68 on the season. The Bulldogs are shooting 48.1% from the field and 40.1% from 3 point range. Bulldog opponents are shooting 40.9% from the field. The Bulldogs are excellent from the free throw line making 75.4% of their chances. The Bulldogs are led by The duo of Steven Gray and Robert Sacre. One of the two leads the Zag’s in every statistical catergory. Gray is averaging 14.2 ppg , 3.5 rebounds, 4.6 assists, and 1.7 steals a game. Sacre is averaging 12.9 ppg, 6.3 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.7 blocks a game. Elias Harris is averaging 11.4 ppg and 5.7 rebounds a game. The Bulldogs are averaging 38.3 rebounds a game and have a rebounding margin of +7.9. Gonzaga averages 16.1 assists and 15.5 turnovers a game. They force 14.9 turnovers a game on defesne. They average 3.2 blocks and 7.2 steals a game.

This is a crucial non-conference game for both teams that will help build their resumes for March. Oklahoma St has played a somewhat weak schedule and needs a signature non-conference win to help their chances. Both of these teams rebound well and force turnovers. They are both comfortable playing in the high 60’s or 70’s. Gonzaga is a better free throw shooting team than Oklahoma St which might come into play in a tight game. I think Gonzaga wins a close game because of their loud fan support.