Washington State finally got a win last Saturday over Pepperdine to snap its five-game losing streak. The Cougars will look to stay on the winning track today when they visit Saint Mary’s.
The Gaels (22-4, 12-1) are at the top of the West Coast Conference standings and are two games ahead of Gonzaga with just five games remaining in the regular season. They’re coming off a 73-64 win over a very good Santa Clara team.
Wazzu (16-10, 6-7) starts a brutal three-game stretch today, hosting Gonzaga and Santa Clara after this matchup with SMC.
Washington State at Saint Mary’s Odds
Saint Mary’s is a 15.5-point college basketball odds favorite on BetMGM against Washington State while the Over/Under is at 139.5 points.
The Moneyline for Saint Mary’s is at -1375 and at +787 for Washington State.
Washington State at SMC On TV
The matchup between Washington State and Saint Mary’s will be televised on ESPN2.
Tonight’s game tips off at 10 p.m. ET.
Washington State at Saint Mary’s Prediction
I predict Washington State covers the 15.5-point spread. I also predict this game goes over 139.5 points.
Beating a conference opponent by 16 points this late in the season is hard to do. While Saint Mary’s is definitely capable, I think the Cougars can knock down enough shots to keep this game closer than that.
The Cougars go up against the Gaels’ stout defense but have one of the best offenses in the WCC. They’re averaging 78.9 points per game, which is the third most in the league and their field-goal percentage of 49.2% ranks second.
Since returning from injury four games ago, Cougars guard Isaiah Watts is starting to find his rhythm again and had 15 points in the win over Pepperdine, including some big shots down the stretch. The return of Watts is huge for the Cougars’ offense and their guard-heavy attack.
Along with Dane Erikstrup and LeJuan Watts, Isaiah Watts is averaging 12 points per game. Junior guard Nate Calmese is leading the team with 16.2 points and 4.2 assists per game.
While the Gaels have a very methodical offense where nothing is rushed, they’re still able to put points on the board and, per KenPom, have an adjusted offensive efficiency of 118.1. This is the second-best mark in the conference.
A lot of SMC’s scoring comes from offensive rebounds. It gets an o-board on 39.1% of its possessions. This could spell bad news for the Cougars, who allow an offensive rebound 34% of the time.
The Cougars need to keep the Gaels and Mitchell Saxen off the offensive glass if they want to keep this game within reach. Saxen is second in the country with 4.19 offensive rebounds per game. He averages 10.6 PPG and eight RPG. Augustas Marciulionis paces the Gaels with 14.2 points and six assists per game and Paulius Murauskas adds 12.1 PPG and 8.2 RPG.
SMC is the better team here but I think WSU got some confidence after last week’s win and are coming off a needed week of rest.
The Cougs are 4-6 against the spread as an underdog and SMC is 10-13 ATS as a favorite. The over is 13-13 for Wazzu and 10-14-1 for the Gaels this season.
