Online March Madness betting players have watched St. John’s emerge as one of the biggest surprises of the season, as they continually took down teams in the Big East, or anyone that visited Madison Square Garden. But the Red Storm will go to Denver for the Southeast region on Thursday, when they face Gonzaga, a deep team and a program who has been known for taking down the teams of the power conferences.
Gonzaga vs. St. John’s Betting – Thursday, 9:45 PM ET
The No.11 Bulldogs (24-9, 11-3 WCC) come into this game with a ton of momentum, winning nine in a row and claiming the WCC tournament as well. Gonzaga came into the season with high expectations, but suffered through a tough non-conference slate and a three-game losing streak in January. However, the Bulldogs are built for the postseason with players like Steven Gray, Robert Sacre, Elias Harris and Demetri Goodson, players who have been here before and won’t back down from a school from the Big East. Gonzaga is 11th in the country in field-goal percentage, 22nd in field-goal defense, and they’re an excellent free-throw shooting team, ranking 15th. MLB betting players know you have to be solid in the fundamentals, and Gonzaga is the poster child for that in college hoops.
The No.6 Red Storm (21-11, 11-6 Big East) fell against Syracuse in the quarterfinals of the conference tournament, but they’ve still won eight of their last 10 games. St. John’s have beaten some very good teams, due to playing in the Big East, but they haven’t fared as well when they’re not playing at home and in particular, at Madison Square Garden. Dwight Hardy leads a team loaded with seniors, and you could argue that Hardy has been the best player in the Big East over the second half of the conference schedule. But the numbers aren’t flattering for St. John’s (287% in three-point defense, 188th in rebound margin).
We’re betting 5dimes that this will be one of the toughest games of the first round for March Madness betting players to call, as Gonzaga is a dangerous 1-point underdog for St. John’s to draw. The Bulldogs beat St. John’s in the 2000 Tournament, then beat them in November 2001 at home while covering the spread both times. We’re giving Gonzaga the edge when it comes to crowd support as their campus in Spokane is much closer for their fans, and the Red Storm hasn’t been that great outside of New York. While St. John’s has a lot of seniors, the program hasn’t been to the Tournament since 2002, while the Bulldogs have players who are used to the pressure of the Big Dance, and that will be enough to power Gonzaga to a sports betting victory.
