Pepperdine Waves vs Gonzaga Bulldogs Prediction, 1/8/2022 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Pepperdine Waves vs Gonzaga Bulldogs

Date: Saturday, January 8, 2022

Location: McCarthey Athletic Center in Spokane, WA

TV: ESPN+

McCarthey Athletic Center is the location where the Gonzaga Bulldogs (11-2) will try to defeat the Pepperdine Waves (6-9) on Saturday.

The Pepperdine Waves took the court against Westmont College and took home the win by a score of 96-69 in their last game. Pepperdine finished the contest having earned a 48.6% FG percentage (36 of 74) and converted 11 out of their 33 shots from distance. At the free throw line, the Waves made 13 of 15 attempts for a rate of 86.7%. When discussing rebounding, they earned 50 with 14 of them being offensive. They also doled out 26 assists for the contest in addition to creating 20 turnovers and having 7 steals. When talking about defending, Pepperdine allowed their opponent to shoot 37.7% from the field on 26 out of 69 shooting. Westmont College totaled 19 assists and had 7 steals in this matchup. Furthermore, Westmont College pulled down 32 boards (9 offensive, 23 defensive), but didn't have a block. Westmont College finished 54.5% from the free throw line by burying 6 of 11 attempts. They also buried 11 out of their 31 tries from beyond the arc. When talking about personal fouls, the Waves finished with 14 and Westmont College finished the game with 18 personal fouls.

Maxwell Lewis is a guy who was a major contributor for this game. He walked away from this one shooting 56.3% from the field and also dished out 2 dimes. He played 24 mins played and also snagged 9 boards. He ended up scoring 27 points on 9 out of 16 shooting.

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Pepperdine comes into this matchup with a win-loss record of 6-9 for the season. They turn it over 15.2 times per contest and as a team are committing 17.5 personal fouls per game. As a unit, Pepperdine is grabbing 36.6 rebounds per game and has accounted for 237 dimes this year, which is 20th in college basketball in terms of passing the rock. The Waves are shooting 32.0% on shots from downtown (109 of 341) and 76.5% from the free throw line. They are averaging 69.6 points per outing (239th in the nation) while shooting 42.1% from the field.

When they are on defense, the Waves are forcing their opponents into 14.7 turnovers per contest while drawing 16.8 personal fouls. They are 344th in the country in allowing assists to the opposition with 219 surrendered on the campaign. The Waves are giving up a field goal percentage of 44.8% (399 of 891) and they relinquish 36.2 boards per contest as a unit. They are surrendering 32.4% on shots from downtown and they rank 276th in college hoops in opponents points per game (72.6).

When they last played, the Gonzaga Bulldogs took home the win by a final score of 93-63 against North Alabama. Concerning team rebounding, Gonzaga permitted North Alabama to pull down 37 in total (12 on the offensive side). They went 27.6% from behind the 3-point line by shooting 8 out of 29 and finished the game at 9 out of 13 at the free throw line (69.2%). The Bulldogs permitted North Alabama to bury 23 of their 71 tries from the field which had them sitting at 32.4% in the matchup. In all, the Bulldogs went 34 for 69 from the floor which had them at 49.3%. In terms of shooting from beyond the arc, Gonzaga buried 7 out of 23 attempts (30.4%). They were able to make 18 of them for a percentage of 58.1%. North Alabama was called for 25 personal fouls for the contest which took the Bulldogs to the charity stripe for 31 attempts. They turned it over 9 times, while getting 7 steals for the contest. The Bulldogs pulled down 31 defensive boards and 14 offensive boards for a total of 45 in this matchup.

Rasir Bolton ended up having an impact for the Bulldogs in the game. He buried 5 of 6 in this matchup for a field goal rate of 83.3%, and tallied 3 rebounds. He earned 14 points in his 23 mins on the court and earned 2 assists in the game.

Gonzaga has a mark of 11-2 for the season. As an offensive team, the Bulldogs are connecting on 52.1% from the field, which ranks them 1st in the nation. Gonzaga has scored 1,113 points so far this season (85.6 per contest) and they collect 42.3 boards per contest. Their rate of assisting teammates is at 17.6 times per contest (14th in the country) and they turn it over 12.1 times per game. The Bulldogs commit 14.8 fouls every game and they connect on 69.2% from the charity stripe.

The Gonzaga defense gives up 29.4% on 3-point shots (84 of 286) and their opposition makes 65.4% of their shots from the free throw line. They relinquish 9.9 dimes and 31.3 total boards per game, which has them ranked 31st and 46th in Division 1. The Bulldogs are ranked 58th in college basketball in points given up per game with 62.5. They are forcing their opponents into 13.1 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 37.3% from the field (12th in college basketball).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Pepperdine

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