When some people like to call the “new Big East” before the 2013–14 season – mostly, it’s a term used to spend a lot of time around the “old Big East” – there was some discussion about what It would make sense to invite Gonzaga to join.
Gonzaga has one of the best basketball programs in any conference. The Jags would have been an award for the Big East. But although Big could be the Big East, it was probably a stretch to try to annex Spokane, Wash.
So instead we get Gonzaga vs. Crayton in the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16. Gonzaga enters the tournament as the No. 1 overall seed, still holds an undefeated record, and Creighton arrives after defeating two mid-major opponents after losing to the boat. Points in the finals of the Big East tournament.
So we do not know if the Blue Xers did wrong in the championship game against Georgetown. They defeated the two best teams UC Santa Barbara and Ohio U, but neither presented the upcoming challenge in Gonzaga uniforms.
The Zags are the best team in the country. Whether they will be champions or not will be decided in four matches. Or less.
Here’s everything you need to know about betting on Gonzaga vs. Crayton in the 2021 NCAA Tournament, including updated odds, trends and our expert prediction for the Sweet 16 game.
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Gonzaga vs Crayton Odds
- Spread: Gonzaga by 13.5
- over under: 158
- money Line: Gonzaga-1100, Crayton +700
Three betting trends to watch
– Depending on how BYU classifies it, Gonzaga has 5-1 ATS in games against major-conference opponents. (The Zags were not involved in any of their three wins over BYU).
– Crayton has already been an underdog three times this season and was 2-1 in those games.
– No undefeated team has lost a Sweet 16 game since 1971, when Marquette fell to the Middle East Region semifinals at Ohio State. Eight teams set perfect records in this round and advanced to the regional finals.
Gonzaga Key Players
Guard Jalan Sugg could be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, depending on who holds it and what kind of player he wants to land. He is the most complete defender prospect in Division I, will have the ability to deliver a solid shooting stroke and a scoring pass on goal from a modern NBA player with elite athleticism. Wing Corey Kispert is a better shooter in college sports. Big man Drew Tamey is not an over-the-top rim guy and rarely takes his game to the perimeter, but he has a great knight to score in the post and walks well enough to defend away from the basket .
Creighton Key Players
Shooter Mitchell Ballock could be the key player for Crayton, even though he comes in as the team’s fifth leading scorer. He hits 39.5 percent of his thugs, and had his big days in some of the team’s biggest wins (20 against Villanova, 29 against Seton Hall). Point guard Marcus Zagrowski was a first-team All-Big East choice. The underside Blue Jays start two other 6-5 players (Damien Jefferson and Denzel Mahoney) and 6-7 Christian Bishop at center. Bishop uses his ballindling ability to drive on big defenders.
Best Individual Matchup: Kispert vs Mahoney
It is difficult to know which players on Creighton’s perimeter will match up with Kispert, but let’s start from here because it is very important to be in the game with Kispert-containing Zags. Few have done, of course, but when BYU held a double-digit lead at halftime of the WCC championship game, Kispert scored just three points. He warmed up quickly in the second half and scored 14 runs in the final 20 minutes. Kispert is shooting 54.5 percent from the farm and 45.8 percent at the trees. An attempt to deprive Kiper of his favored position, especially to the right of the top of the key, is crucial to deal with the Gonzaga attack. Mahoney has not had his best shooting year and is tied with only 32.8 percent deep. But he has the strength to upset Kispert and maybe a few things as well.
To know Gonzaga vs. Creighton State
Creighton is known as a 3-point shooting team, largely due to the trio of Zagrowski, Ballock and Mahoney, who combined to make the 205th match this season. But the Blue Jays are actually a more effective team on 2-point attempts, where they rank 10th in the nation compared to 52nd in 3-point accuracy, according to KenPom.com. The 3-point shot is crucial to the Blue Jace attack, but they rank 32nd in part of their field goal attempts from 3-point range. So it is not that their only way of scoring is.
Learn … Marcus Zagrowski
Zagrowski led Creighton as a sophomore as a part of the Big East title and was introduced as an All-American in the press. There was a slight drop in their key figures (15.7 ppg, 4.4 apg). The Blue Jay were slightly less effective as a team without guard Ty-Shawn Alexander, who changed after last season and has spent most of the year in the G League. So this dream season was not conceived, but it has not only ended in the NCAA tournament, with the Creightons playing in the Sweet 16. Jagerowski has been a better player in March Madness, averaging 18.5 points and 5 assists for two rounds.
Gonzaga vs. Crayton’s prediction
In a second-round game on Monday by Gonzaga center Drew Tieme for Oklahoma, which has several bigs, including a legal shot-blocker at 6-10 Kuar Kuth, Creighton is faced with a tough job. Timm went 9-of-12 from the floor and scored 30 points, and he also passed for four assists. Creighton starts 6-7 Christian Bishops at the center spot. He has a shot-blocker in Ryan Kalkbrenner to come off the bench, but he is thin and inexperienced and may struggle to cope with Timmy’s ballistic footwork. Crayton’s best chance: Make lots of shots and search away to make the jugs miserable on the perimeter. They guard the 3-point line very well. They will need to be given a chance.
final score: Gonzaga 89, Crayton 75
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