2012 March Madness Betting
West Virginia Gonzaga Odds – Thursday, 7:20 PM ET
Gonzaga -1
Over/Under 132.5
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Gonzaga Will Have Their Hands Full With West Virginia! That much we know for certain.
March Madness is about to explode all over the sports scene and there are always potential upsets during the first week of the Tournament, although sportsbooks aren’t leaning either way in the East bracket matchup between Gonzaga and West Virginia. This could go down to the final seconds and even though the Bulldogs are the higher seed, the Mountaineers won’t be an easy out.
The No.10 Mountaineers (19-13, 9-9 Big East) were bounced by Connecticut in the Big East tournament, and some sportsbook reviews didn’t even think West Virginia should have gotten into the NCAA Tournament, much less get a No.10 seed. Kevin Jones and Darryl “Truck” Bryant have been huge for the Mountaineers, and they provide the senior leadership that 2012 March Madness betting players would like their teams to have.
West Virginia is tough and they’re not going to back down from anyone, and they embody the cantankerous spirit of head coach Bob Huggins, who guided his teams to 18 trips to the Tournament in his last 19 years and two years ago, the Mountaineers went to the Final Four.
The No.7 Bulldogs (25-6, 13-3 WCC) fell in the West Coast tournament final to Saint Mary’s, but they have had success against a Big East team this season as they romped over Notre Dame by 20 points back in November.
Kevin Pangos and Elias Harris lead the team in scoring, but players that work with price per head sportsbook services will tell you that the Tournament slows down and you may need to go inside; Robert Sacre has been inconsistent this season, but the Bulldogs need him to raise his game if they’re going to make some noise at the big dance.
Kevin Pangos and Elias Harris lead the team in scoring
Sportsbooks have listed this March Madness betting contest as a pick ‘em, and this is the first meeting between the two. West Virginia is 2-2 ATS on a neutral court and 7-3 ATS in non-conference games, while Gonzaga is 3-1 ATS and 6-6 ATS in the same categories, respectively. It goes to show how much respect the Big East gets for the Mountaineers to earn a pick ‘em as a No.10 seed and the Bulldogs will have to bring their best game.
But the crowd is going to be a factor as West Virginia will be playing in the city of their biggest rivals, Pittsburgh, and their fans would love to get a Tournament win or two here, especially as Pitt failed to make the Tournament and had a poor all-around season.
Trends:
West Virginia
Over is 11-1-1 in WVA last 13 neutral site games.
Over is 16-5-1 in WVA last 22 non-conference games.
WVA are 6-2 ATS in their last 8 Thu. games.
Gonzaga:
Over is 19-6 in GONZ last 25 NCAA Tournament games.
GONZ are 4-10-1 ATS in their last 15 games overall.
Under is 40-18-1 in GONZ last 59 overall.
Pick: It’s only about a two-hour drive from Morgantown, and that is going to play a role as West Virginia comes up with the win in your online betting book.