Merrimack vs Gonzaga Odds, Lines, and Spread (Dec. 9)

• Gonzaga is a 29.5-point favorite over Merrimack on Thursday (Dec. 9th) at 9 pm ET at the McCarthey Athletic Center
• The Bulldogs have dropped two of three, after starting 6-0
• Read below for odds, analysis and a betting prediction

Oh how the mighty have fallen, at least temporarily. After racing out to a 6-0 start, which included two wins over top-five opponents, Gonzaga has dropped two of its past three. The lone victory during that stretch came against Tarleton State, in a game the Bulldogs failed to cover by 23 points.

After four days off, Gonzaga will look to rebound on Thursday (Dec. 9th), when they host Merrimack.

Merrimack vs #5 Gonzaga Odds

Odds as of Dec. 8th at FanDuel.

The Zags opened up as a massive 29.5-point favorite, in a game that features a total of 136.5. Tip-off is scheduled for 9 pm ET at the McCarthey Athletic Center in Spokane, WA, a building the Bulldogs are 5-0 at this season.

Gonzaga Bulldogs Betting Analysis

In Gonzaga’s defense, they have played arguably the toughest non-conference schedule to date. Both their losses came against ranked opponents, falling to #3 Duke two weeks ago, and #9 Alabama on Saturday.

The Bulldogs fell behind the Tide by as many as 18 points last weekend, but managed to cut the lead to four with 5 and a half minutes to play. That’s as close as they would come however, as Alabama ultimately prevailed 91-82.

Alabama beating Gonzaga in Seattle is a great win for the SEC and Nate Oats is an excellent coach

Gonzaga is very good…but I hope people remember this game when they don’t lose in their bad conference and people want to rank them #1

— Matt Jones (@KySportsRadio) December 5, 2021

Drew Timme led the Zags with 23 points, while Julian Strawther added 13, and freshman phenom Chet Holmgren chipped in 10.

It was an ugly performance by Gonzaga’s standards at both ends of the court, as they shot 44.8% from the field, which is roughly 8.5 percentage points below their season average. They were atrocious from the free throw line, going 13-for-25, and they committed 12 turnovers.

Defensively, they allowed the Tide to shoot 43.1% from the field, and yielded 10 first half three-pointers on just 13 attempts.

Re-watched the Alabama-Gonzaga game and thought Chet Holmgren did so many good things defensively that might not go viral, but really impact winning. He was a +1 in 22 MIN (Zags lost by 9). He's now averaging 11.8 REBS and 5.8 BLK per 40 while shooting 83% from 2 and 30% from 3. pic.twitter.com/mOUf8dN2dP

— Mike Schmitz (@Mike_Schmitz) December 8, 2021

Despite their recent lackluster stretch, the Bulldogs still rank 10th in average score margin (+20.6), sixth in points per game, and third in effective field goal percentage.

Merrimack Warriors Betting Analysis

Merrimack meanwhile, enters play fresh off three straight losses. Last time out they fell 76-56 to Brown, despite a 16 point, 6 steal, 4 block effort from Jordan Minor.

The Warriors leading scorer has accounted for 25% of the team’s points this season, and is averaging over 18 points per game over his last five outings.

Derring with the steal, to Watkins, to Minor for two!

39-22 Brown | 18:00 | 2H#MakeChaos // #GoMack pic.twitter.com/bFduaPpwBk

— Merrimack Men’s Basketball (@MerrimackMBB) December 8, 2021

Malik Edmead was the only other player to reach double figures for Merrimack with 16, as the team shot 34% from the field. The Warriors were even worse from three, knocking down only 22.7% of their looks, and they lost the rebounding battle by 20.

Defensively, they allowed the Bears to shoot 49.1% from the field, and 43.5% from three, but they did force 18 turnovers.

If there’s one thing Merrimack does well it’s force turnovers. They’ve done so on 26.4% of their opponent’s possessions this season, which is the 13th highest rate in the country.

WHAT A SEQUENCE FOR THE WARRIORS. A block by McKoy followed up with a slam for Minor!

53-45 MC | 6:57 | 2H#MakeChaos // #GoMack pic.twitter.com/2NmwcrciAQ

— Merrimack Men’s Basketball (@MerrimackMBB) December 5, 2021

Offensively however, this is one of the worst shooting teams in the country. They rank 350th in points per game, and 310th in effective field goal percentage.

Merrimack vs Gonzaga Pick

The Warriors have eclipsed 61 points in just one of their past nine games, and six times during that stretch they’ve been held below 58 points. Not exactly a recipe for success if they’re trying to keep up with the Zags.

The under is 7-2 in Merrimack’s games this season, and 5-0 in games with a total above 123. As for Gonzaga, if this game is going to go over they might have to do it all by themselves.

Purdue is on top of the latest men’s college basketball AP Poll 🚨🏀

1. Purdue
2. Baylor
3. Duke
4. UCLA
5. Gonzaga
6. Villanova
7. Texas
8. Kansas
9. Alabama
10. Kentucky

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) December 6, 2021

The over has hit in back-to-back Gonzaga games versus ranked competition, but that was versus two of the best offenses in the country. The Warriors have virtually no shot at pushing the Bulldogs and turning this contest into a shootout.

Gonzaga home games have been a gold mine for under bettors this season, as four of their five outings at the McCarthey Center have fallen short of the total. Play the under in this one as well.

Pick: Under 136.5 (-110)