Saint Mary’s won the West Coast Conference regular-season title for the second year in a row and swept rival Gonzaga for the first time since 2015-16, but the Gaels couldn’t escape the Bulldogs in the WCC Tournament.
Gonzaga upset Saint Mary’s, 58-51, in the WCC title game. The Gaels turned the ball over 18 times and shot just 38.5 percent, while the Bulldogs scored 20 points off of turnovers.
Both Gonzaga and Saint Mary’s advanced to the NCAA Tournament. The Bulldogs already won their opening-round game against Georgia. Now it’s the Gaels’ turn, as they enter the tournament as a No. 7 seed and take on No. 10 Vanderbilt today in Cleveland, Ohio.
Saint Mary’s (28-5, 17-1 WCC) has won 18 of its past 20 games, including eight in a row heading into the WCC title game. The Gaels have the conference’s best defense, which is giving up 60.7 points a game. They also lead the league with 39.8 rebounds a night.
Vanderbilt (20-12, 8-10 SEC) has lost three games in a row and six of its last nine. The Commodores finished in 10th place in the SEC, and they were bounced out of the conference tournament in the first round by Texas.
They average 79.6 points a game, which ranks No. 7 in the SEC, and they’re giving up 74.8, which ranks No. 13. The Commodores shoot 74.7 percent from the free throw line, which ranks No. 3 in the conference.
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Saint Mary’s vs. Vanderbilt Odds
Saint Mary’s is a 4.5-point college basketball betting odds favorite on BetMGM vs. Vanderbilt, and the Over/Under is at 135.5 points.
The Moneyline is at -190 for Saint Mary’s and +155 for Vanderbilt.
Saint Mary’s vs. Vanderbilt Channel
The first round NCAA Tournament game featuring Saint Mary’s and Vanderbilt will be televised on TruTV.
Tip-off is scheduled for 3:15 p.m. ET.
Saint Mary’s vs. Vanderbilt Prediction
I predict Saint Mary’s wins, 64-57.
Saint Mary’s is an old-school team, built on dominant play in the paint and suffocating defense. The Gaels have three talented big men that won’t be easy for anyone to push around: 6-8, 235-pound sophomore Paulius Murauskas (12.5 ppg, 8 rpg), 6-10, 250-pound graduate student Mitchell Saxen (10.6 ppg, 7.9 rpg), and 6-6 senior Luke Barrett (9.8 ppg, 6.7 rpg). Saxen put up 20 points and seven rebounds in the WCC title game against Gonzaga.
The offense is run by two-time WCC Player of the Year Augustas Marciulionis, who leads the team with 14.3 points a night and 45 steals and ranks No. 3 in the conference with 202 assists. The Gaels also lean heavily on WCC Sixth Man of the Year Mikey Lewis, who has played in all 33 games and averages 8.5 points a night.
Vanderbilt has a couple of talented big men of its own. Six-foot-7 junior Devin McGlockton is averaging 10.4 points and 7.9 rebounds a game. He’s getting some help from 6-8 sophomore Jaylen Carey.
This is shaping up to be an old-school slugfest and could be a low-scoring affair. Saint Mary’s just has more muscle. The Gaels are hard to beat when they feed the big boys in the post.
