The best March Madness betting sites favor Gonzaga when the Grand Canyon Antelopes and the Gonzaga Bulldogs play on Friday in NCAA college basketball Tournament First Round action at Pepsi Center. Grand Canyon has gone 24-11 so far this season. The Antelopes defeated Southern Utah in WAC Tournament action on Saturday. Gonzaga is sitting pretty at 28-5 on the year following a win over St. Mary’s in their previous game.
The #3 Gonzaga Bulldogs (28-5 SU, 14-18 ATS) have gone 13-0 SU and 7-6 ATS in their past 13 Round of 64 college basketball games. The Bulldogs will try to prolong that winning streak with a win over #14 Grand Canyon Antelopes (24-11, 14-18) in Denver, Colorado, on Friday night.
Gonzaga has gone 7-2 SU in its past nine NCAA Tournament games and 0-5 ATS against the spread in its last five. Grand Canyon debuted in March Madness in 2021 as the 15 seed. They lost to the Iowa Hawkeyes 86-74 but they covered the spread as a 13.5-point underdog at the best online sportsbooks.
Grand Canyon Antelopes vs. Gonzaga Bulldogs Odds by MyBookie.ag
| Team | SP/RL | TOTAL | ML | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Canyon | +15½ ( -110 ) | 154½ ( -110 ) | +1000 |  |
| Gonzaga | -15½ ( -110 ) | 154½ ( -110 ) | -1800 | |
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Betting Grand Canyon Antelopes
The Antelopes have made their way through the WAC tournament as the #3 seed. They upset the Sam Houston Bearkats 78-75 in the semis and the Southern Utah Thunderbirds 84-66 in the championship game.
Rayshon Harrison had 31 points in the win against the Thunderbirds. Gabe McGlothan went on to finish with 21 points. Harrison was the leader of the Antelopes in scoring this season with 17.7 ppg. Grand Canyon closed its regular season on a 6-0 SU and 5-1 ATS streak. That run included four SU upsets, which brought the Antelopes’ record as an underdog this season up to 6-4 SU and 7-3 ATS.
Grand Canyon’s offensive attack has been in rare form in the team’s current 8-1 SU and 6-2 ATS streak. They average 82.3 points over that period. The Antelopes have been allowing 75 points or more in 4 of their last 6.
It’s safe to say that Gonzaga isn’t going to have a lot of trouble scoring in this game. This means that Grand Canyon will need to remain hot on offense if they hope to cover the point spread at the best betting sites.
Rayshon Harrison has put up 30 points or more thrice this season. A straight up upset over a team as talented as Gonzaga is not likely, but whether the Antelopes can pull it off will depend on another terrific Harrison performance.
Betting Gonzaga Bulldogs
The Bulldogs modus operandi has been blowing teams right out of the water with their high-calibered offense. Over the team’s last five games, though, Gonzaga has been playing well on defense as well. They have allowed 65.8 points per game. Gonzaga needs to build on that strong defense if they hope to make a good run in this year’s NCAAB Tournament. Winning this matchup outright shouldn’t be too hard for the seasoned Bulldogs and their topnotch offense.
To cover this large spread at the best betting sites, Gonzaga will have to remain focused on defense, in particular when it comes to containing Rayshon Harrison. The Bulldogs won the WCC tournament with a 77-51 blowout victory over the Saint Mary’s Gaels in the championship game.
Drew Timme became the school’s all-time leading scorer in that game with 18 points. Timme is ranking 15th in the country in scoring this season. He averages 20.9 points per game. With the win over Saint Mary’s, Gonzaga went on to improve to 9-0 SU and 6-3 ATS in its last nine games.
They have been winning by an average of 20.8 points per game. The Bulldogs will be entering the NCAA college basketball Tournament with the highest-scoring offense in the nation. They average 87.5 points per game.
Grand Canyon Antelopes vs. Gonzaga Bulldogs Picks
We are going to stay with the Gonzaga Bulldogs. They have been winning nine straight games in a row and they are playing very well at this moment. Gonzaga has scored 77 or more points in each of those past nine games.
They have got 97 or more points in 4 of their last 7. As for Grand Canyon, they are currently on a six-game winning streak. They had a great conference tournament showing. The Antelopes have scored 71 or more points in all 6 of those games. They may just be able to keep up with the Zags. However, we think that Gonzaga will pull away and cover.
