Pepperdine Waves vs Gonzaga Bulldogs Prediction, 1/4/2024 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Pepperdine Waves vs Gonzaga Bulldogs

Date: Thursday, January 4, 2024

Location: McCarthey Athletic Center in Spokane, WA

TV: ESPN+

McCarthey Athletic Center is the location where the Gonzaga Bulldogs (9-4) will attempt to defeat the Pepperdine Waves (7-8) on Thursday.

The Pepperdine Waves played Westcliff and notched a win by a score of 83-47 in their last contest. Pepperdine walked away from the game with a 50.0% FG percentage (31 of 62) and buried 10 of 23 shots from beyond the arc. At the free throw line, the Waves made 11 of their 16 tries for a rate of 68.8%. When discussing getting rebounds, they earned 46 with 13 of them being of the offensive variety. They also dished out 20 dimes in this game in addition to creating 8 turnovers and getting 4 steals. When talking about defending, Pepperdine allowed their opponent to shoot 28.6% from the field on 18 out of 63 shooting. Westcliff recorded 7 dimes and had 10 steals for the matchup. Additionally, Westcliff pulled down 26 boards (8 offensive, 18 defensive), but finished the game with no rejections. Westcliff finished the contest at 61.5% at the charity stripe by converting 8 of 13 attempts. They made 3 out of their 16 attempts from three-point range. When talking about fouls, the Waves finished with 12 while Westcliff recorded 16 fouls.

Jevon Porter is one guy who came through for this contest. He notched 18 points on 7 out of 16 shooting. He saw the court for 23 mins played and also grabbed 6 rebounds. He finished the game shooting 43.8% from the field and recorded 2 dimes.

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Pepperdine will play this contest with a mark of 7-8 so far this year. They are giving up possession 12.5 times per game and as a group they are committing 16.7 personal fouls every game. As a unit, Pepperdine is snagging 35.7 boards per contest and is sitting with 209 assists for the year, which has them ranked 78th in Division 1 in terms of passing the rock. The Waves are hitting 35.5% on three-point shots (97 of 273) and 69.2% from the charity stripe. They are averaging 72.1 points per game (255th in college hoops) while going 45.0% from the field.

When they are on the defensive end, the Waves are able to force 12.4 turnovers on a nightly basis and they draw 17.4 fouls. They currently rank 234th in Division 1 in allowing assists to the opposition with 180 surrendered this season. The Waves defensively are giving up a field goal percentage of 46.6% (379 of 814) and they concede 31.5 boards per game as a group. They are giving up 35.2% on 3-point attempts and they rank 160th in college basketball in PPG allowed (70.2).

The last time they took the hardwood, the Gonzaga Bulldogs went home defeated by a final of 84-74 against San Diego State. The Bulldogs were able to corral 20 defensive rebounds and 10 offensive boards totaling 30 for the game. They gave up possession of the ball 13 times, while recording 7 steals for the matchup. San Diego State was called for 17 personal fouls in this contest which took the Bulldogs to the free throw line for 25 tries. They were able to bury 19 of the free throw attempts for a percentage of 76.0%. In terms of shots from beyond the arc, Gonzaga buried 5 out of their 19 tries (26.3%). At the conclusion of this game, the Bulldogs went 25 for 59 from the field which gave them a percentage of 42.4%. The Bulldogs permitted San Diego State to bury 32 of 64 tries from the floor which gave them a percentage of 50.0% in this game. They shot 32.0% from three-point range by shooting 8 out of 25 and finished the game at 12 out of 16 at the free throw line (75.0%). Concerning attacking the glass, Gonzaga allowed San Diego State to get 31 overall (6 on the offensive side).

Graham Ike ended up having an impact for the Bulldogs for the matchup. He made 8 of 13 for this game giving him a rate of 61.5%, and had 10 rebounds. He racked up 20 points in his 31 mins on the court, but went home with no dimes.

Gonzaga has a record of 9-4 this season. The Bulldogs are responsible for committing 16.1 fouls every game and they go 70.4% from the free throw line. They are getting an assist 15.6 times per contest (74th in college basketball) and they are giving up possession 11.8 times per contest. Gonzaga has scored 1,086 points this season (83.5 per contest) and they average 42.8 boards per contest. As an offense, the Bulldogs are connecting on 48.8% from the field, which ranks them 35th in the country.

The Gonzaga defense surrenders 30.4% on shots from behind the 3-point line (92 of 303) and their opponents are knocking down 73.6% of their foul shots. They give up 10.9 assists and 32.2 rebounds per game, ranking them 62nd and 60th in those defensive categories. The Bulldogs defensively are ranked 119th in college basketball in points given up per game with 68.4. They are able to force 11.8 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 39.1% from the field (33rd in college hoops).

So what is Tonights Parlay prediction?

Parlay's Pundit's Pick: Take Gonzaga and under the total points

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