Iowa Hawkeyes vs Gonzaga Bulldogs Prediction, 12/19/2020 College Basketball Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Iowa Hawkeyes vs Gonzaga Bulldogs

Date: Saturday, December 19, 2020

Location: Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, SD

TV: ESPN+

Odds/Point Spread: Iowa (+3)

Sanford Pentagon is the venue where and the Gonzaga Bulldogs (3-0) will take on the Iowa Hawkeyes (6-0) on Saturday. The odds on this game have Gonzaga as 3-point favorites. The over/under has been set at 173.5.

Iowa enters this contest with a mark of 6-0 on the campaign. They turn it over 9.3 times per contest and as a unit they are committing 14.7 fouls per contest. As a team, Iowa is pulling down 43.0 boards per game and has racked up 144 assists for the year, which is 4th in the nation in terms of passing the ball. The Hawkeyes are connecting on 39.8% on three-point shots (70 of 176) and 74.5% from the free throw line. They currently have an average of 100.5 points per contest (1st in college hoops) on 51.0% from the floor. When they are on the defensive end, the Hawkeyes are forcing 16.3 turnovers per game and they draw 21.2 personal fouls. The Hawkeyes defensively are giving up a shooting percentage of 38.9% (158 of 406) and they concede 38.7 boards per contest as a group. They currently rank 250th in Division 1 in allowing assists to their opponents with 85 conceded for the campaign. They give up 30.1% on 3-point shots and they rank 147th in college basketball in PPG allowed (68.5).

The Iowa Hawkeyes stepped onto the hardwood against the Northern Illinois Huskies and earned the victory with a final of 106-53 in their last game. Iowa ended the game having earned a 56.2% field goal percentage (41 of 73) and made 12 of 30 shots from beyond the arc. From the free throw line, the Hawkeyes converted 12 of 18 tries for a rate of 66.7%. When it comes to pulling down boards, they compiled 44 with 15 of them being offensive. They also distributed 29 assists in the matchup while having 12 steals and 7 blocks. In relation to the defense, Iowa allowed the other team to go 56.2% from the field on 41 out of 73. Northern Illinois distributed 10 dimes and 5 steals in the matchup. Moreover, the Huskies collected 37 rebounds (19 offensive, 18 defensive) and earned 7 rejections. Northern Illinois finished shooting 33.3% from the charity stripe by converting 3 of 9 tries. They made 2 out of their 15 tries from beyond the arc.

Luka Garza is a guy who played a lot in the game. He ended up finishing with 23 points on 8 of 10 shooting. He saw the court for 20 mins played and also grabbed 8 rebounds. Garza went 80.0% from the field and also distributed 2 dimes. Another guy that came through in this contest for the Hawkeyes was Joe Wieskamp. He pulled down 4 rebounds and accounted for 2 assists. He walked away from this one shooting 69.2% from the floor in this game by going 9-of-13 (20 points). When all was said and done, Wieskamp was on the court for 19 minutes.

Gonzaga has a win-loss record of 3-0 this season. The Bulldogs have committed 19.0 fouls per contest and they go 74.1% from the charity stripe. They are assisting teammates 19.0 times per contest (22nd in the nation) and they lose possession by turning the ball over 13.3 times per game. Gonzaga has 279 points on the year (93.0 per game) and they snag 37.7 boards per contest. On the offensive side of the ball, the Bulldogs are connecting on 55.3% from the floor, which ranks them 33rd in the country. The Bulldogs on defense are ranked 291st in the country in points allowed per game with 79.7. They have surrendered 12.7 dimes and 32.3 total boards per game, which is 161st and 83rd in college hoops. The Gonzaga defense gives up 34.3% on shots from behind the 3-point line (24 of 70) and opponents are converting on 76.4% of their shots from the charity stripe. They are able to force 15.7 TO's every game and have allowed teams to shoot 42.8% from the field (183rd in the nation).

When they last played, the Gonzaga Bulldogs took home the win by a final score of 87-82 when they faced the West Virginia Mountaineers. The Bulldogs corralled 26 defensive rebounds and 8 offensive boards for a total of 34 for the contest. They turned away 3 tries while earning 9 steals in the game. The Mountaineers committed 23 fouls in this game which took the Bulldogs to the charity stripe for a total of 21 tries. They were able to make 15 of the free throws for a percentage of 71.4%. With respect to 3-pointers, Gonzaga buried 4 out of 16 tries (25.0%). When the final whistle was blown, the Bulldogs shot 34 out of 69 from the field which gave them a percentage of 49.3%. The Bulldogs allowed the Mountaineers to knock down 25 of 66 tries from the field which gave them a rate of 37.9% for this game. They finished the game shooting 29.4% from distance by going 5 of 17 and ended up shooting 27 out of 33 from the charity stripe (81.8%). When discussing cleaning up the glass, Gonzaga allowed West Virginia to pull down 37 overall (11 on the offensive glass).

Drew Timme was pivotal for the Bulldogs for the game. He buried 7 out of 17 in this game for a field goal percentage of 41.2%, which had him sitting at 17 points. Timme grabbed 3 rebounds in his 34 mins played and totaled 2 assists in the game. One more player that ended up being a major factor for Gonzaga was Joel Ayayi. He totaled 21 points in his 33 minutes on the hardwood via 10 of 15 shooting in this contest. Ayayi wrapped this one up going 66.7% from the field while totaling 4 dimes and 7 rebounds.

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Iowa (+3)

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