(11) Gonzaga Bulldogs AT (6) Saint John’s Red Storm
Mar 17, 2011 at 8:45 PM EST at Pepsi Center
Opening Line: Gonzaga -1.5
Current Line: Saint John’s -1.5
Opening Total: 135
Current Total: 135
Opening Moneyline: St J -125 / Gon +105
Current Moneyline: St J -125 / Gon +105
Saint John’s has been battle tested all year as part of the rugged Big East Conference. They played 11 games against ranked opponents and finished with a 6-5 record in those games, with their biggest upsets being victories over then 3rd ranked Duke and then 4th ranked Pittsburgh. They lost in the quarterfinal of the Big East tournament to Syracuse by 6 points. Their 6th rank after finishing 6-5 against ranked opponents speaks the snub that Big East teams can expect after beating up on each other all year. They finished 12-6 in Big East play.
Gonzaga, conversely, won their Conference and finished 11-3 in WCC play, dominating the weak teams in the West Coast Conference. They closed out the season with 9 straight wins, but only faced 4 ranked opponents all year. They lost 3 of those 4 games and have yet to prove themselves against the top tier teams in the tournament. Many are favoring them to make a deep run, led by their strong trio of scorers, but there is certainly no guarantee when the line has shifted to the opening underdog, Saint John’s.
Some betting trends:
Saint John’s is 8-2 SU in their last 10 games and the total has gone OVER In 5 of Saint John’s last 5 games.
The last meeting between the teams was won by Gonzaga with a score of 65-58. The game took place on November 22nd, 2001.
Gonzaga’s Overall Scoring 76.7
Saint John’s Overall Defense 66.41
Gonzaga’s Away Scorng 72.50
Saint John’s Home Defense: 61.56
Gonzaga’s Road Rebounds 36.42
Saint John’s Home Rebounds Allowed 32.78
Saint John’s Overall Scoring 70.06
Gonzaga’s Overall Defense: 65.06
Saint John’s Home Scoring 70.94
Gonzaga’s Road Defense: 68.00
Saint John’s Home Rebounds: 33.17
Gonzaga’s Road Rebounds Allowed: 30.92
Gonzaga is led by the trio of Steven Gray, Robert Sacre, and Elias Harris. The three combine for 38.4 points per game, nearly half (49.8%) of all Gonzaga’s points. 6’5″ senior Steven Gray is the only Gonzaga player to play over 30 minutes a game, and he leads the team in scoring with 13.8 a game; he also dishes out 3.9 assits per game and grabs 3.8 rebounds. He failed to score in double figures 5 times this season, but Gonzaga won 4 of those games. Their depth allows them to rely on Sacre (12.5 points per game, 6.2 rebounds per game) and Harris (12.1 points per game and 5.9 rebounds per game). There are only 4 players on Gonzaga to play more than 20 minutes a game and they have 11 players that see 13 minutes per game or more.
Saint John’s is led by 6’2″ senior guard Dwight Hardy. Hardy averages 18 points per game and shoots 44.9% from the field and 35.1% from three (59 of 168). He attempted at least three 3s in every Saint John’s game this year and on games in which he hit at least three 3s, Saint John’s is 7-1. If he can get cooking early and get other Saint John’s players involved then Saint John’s could win, as they are now favored to do.
