Loyola Marymount vs Gonzaga Pick – Basketball Predictions & Odds 2/16/23
Gonzaga Bulldogs (21-5) vs. Loyola Marymount Lions (17-10)
February 16, 2023 11:00 pm EDT
The Line: Loyola Marymount Lions +6.5 / Gonzaga Bulldogs -6.5 ; Over/Under: 156
(Get latest betting odds)
The Gonzaga Bulldogs and the Loyola Marymount Lions meet Thursday in college basketball action from Gersten Pavilion. Gonzaga enters this one at 21-5 so far. The Bulldogs beat BYU in their last game. As for LMU, they’re sitting at 17-10 on the year after a loss to Santa Clara over the weekend. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.
Gonzaga Bulldogs
Gonzaga got off to a nice start this year, going 15-3 over their first 18 games. The Bulldogs have since gone 6-2 over their last eight, beating Portland, Pacific, Portland again, Santa Clara, San Francisco and BYU in those outings.
In the matchup versus BYU on Saturday, the Bulldogs were down 37-34 by the break. Gonzaga rallied for a 54-44 second half and took the comeback win 88-81. Leading scorer Julian Strawther put up 26 points with five rebounds.
LMU Lions
Over on the Loyola Marymount side, they hit a 13-7 run over their first 20 games of the year. The Lions are 4-3 in their last seven with wins over Gonzaga, Portland, Pepperdine and Saint Mary’s alongside losses to BYU, San Diego and Santa Clara.
Matched up against Santa Clara on Saturday, the Lions were up 37-30 by halftime. LMU was outscored 41-32 in the second half however and lost 71-69. Cameron Shelton led the team on 36 points and Keli Leaupepe doubled on 11 points and 15 rebounds in the defeat.
ANDREW’S FREE PICK
I’m going to stick with Gonzaga here. The Bulldogs are playing pretty well over their last six games (a 5-1 stretch), scoring 70 or more in each outing and 82 or more in five of them. Gonzaga has something to prove in this matchup, however. The last time these teams met up back on January 19 at McCarthey Athletic Center, LMU powered out a 68-67 victory that was pretty close the whole way. Gonzaga was out-rebounded 38-29 (12-7 offensive) in that one and went just 15-of-23 (65.2 percent) from the line. LMU took the victory despite 16 turnovers to the Bulldogs’ eight, shooting 47.4 percent along the way. This one’s probably going to be close most of the way as well, but I like Gonzaga to get a little revenge on a cover here. Should be a fun game to watch.
