The Oklahoma State Cowboys will wrap up their non-conference schedule against the Gonzaga Bulldogs Monday night at Gallagher-Iba Arena. Let’s take a closer look at the NCAA Basketball betting odds for this high-profile affair between ranked teams.
Hitting
the road
Gonzaga
has played just one true road game this year, but the 13th-ranked
team in the nation will play five of its next six games away from
Spokane. The Bulldogs escaped with a 71-69 victory over
Washington State as 11.5-point favorites in their only game on an
opponents’ floor this year, while going OVER the posted total of
129.5. Gonzaga is 2-4 against the spread (ATS) as a road
underdog of six points or less since 2010.
Getting
after it defensively
Oklahoma
State will need to win this game on the defensive end, especially
since its facing one of the top offensive teams in the country. The Cowboys rank 12th nationally in both scoring and field goal
percentage defense, as they’ve given up just 55.5 points per game
through 11 contests. Monday’s opponent has compiled a losing
10-12 ATS record when playing a team that allows 64 or less points
per game.
Dominating
Big 12 foes
Sports
bettors may find the Bulldogs as an attractive option on the NCAA basketball odds page, considering they’ve won all four of their
games against Big 12 Conference opponents this season, outscoring
them by a significant 318-236 margin. Gonzaga is also
undefeated in four previous meetings with Oklahoma State, including a
73-52 blowout victory as seven-point home favorites on New Year’s
Eve in 2010. The program is 5-2 ATS when taking on Big 12 foes
over the last two-plus seasons, with the UNDER going 6-1 in that
situation.
Home-court
advantage
The
Cowboys have won 180 of their last 184 non-conference home games,
which fits nicely with their 19-11 ATS mark in Stillwater over the
last two-plus seasons. Oklahoma State has also managed to
topple at least one ranked opponent at Gallagher-Iba Arena in each of
the past 14 seasons, with the school going 25-14 in that particular
situation during that span.
Winning
it at the charity stripe
It’s
a big surprising that the Bulldogs are shooting just 67.6 percent of
their shots from the free-throw line, considering they rank third in
the country in field goal percentage overall. The Cowboys could
win this game in the closing minutes, as they lead the Big 12 and
rank 10th in college basketball in knocking down 76.8 percent of
their attempts at the charity stripe.
Prediction
I’m
going to recommend that readers back the Cowboys as one of their NCAA
basketball picks Monday, as they’ve gone 12-5 ATS in December the
last two-plus years, while the Bulldogs are 9-10 ATS in that same
situation.
College
Basketball Pick: Oklahoma State Cowboys -1.5 at Pinnacle