#4 Kentucky vs #7 Gonzaga: NCAA Basketball Predictions, Odds & Best Bets (12/7)

The Kentucky Wildcats travel to the PNW to take on the Gonzaga Bulldogs in this Top 10 Showdown in Seattle. Although it isn’t a home game for the Zags, playing at Climate Pledge Arena will certainly feel like it tonight.

Gonzaga is 7-1 this season, with their one loss coming against West Virginia in overtime. They bounced back, beating Indiana and Davidson in the Battle 4 Atlantis, and now take on a tough Wildcats team. One could argue Gonzaga may be looking ahead to a neutral site showdown with UConn next weekend. Will they come focused tonight?

The Wildcats are looking to get back on track after a road loss to Clemson in the ACC/SEC Showdown. Other than that game, Kentucky has looked fantastic, but Mark Pope and his crew have another huge task at hand. I trust Kentucky to turn things around, but can they pull off this six point upset in Seattle?

#4 Kentucky vs #7 Gonzaga: Top 10 Showdown in Seattle

Matchup Information – Kentucky vs Gonzaga

• Venue & Location: Climate Pledge Arena (Seattle, WA)
• Date: Saturday, December 7th, 2024
• Tip Off: 10:00pm Eastern
• Broadcast: ESPN2

Betting Odds

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Spread

• Kentucky +6.5 (-115)
• Gonzaga -6.5 (-105)

Money Line

• Kentucky +220
• Gonzaga -260

Total

• Over 166.5 (-108)
• Under 166.5 (-112)

Will Wildcats Stun Zags in Seattle?

Gonzaga already has four Top 60 wins on the year. They beat Baylor, Arizona State, San Diego State, and Indiana. That’s quite the resume early in the season. They’ve also got a loss to #54 West Virginia, but they haven’t played with their food, annihilating teams that they should.

Now the Wildcats have typically been the same way. They’ve blown out literally every non-ACC opponent this year. Kentucky’s closest game this season was a 19 point victory over #99 Western Kentucky, winning all of their other games by a minimum of 28 points (excluding Duke). Coming off their first loss of the season on the road, I see Mark Pope rallying the troops and competing in this game against Gonzaga. They have a tune up game next against Colgate at home before playing Louisville and Ohio State on back to back weekends.

Tonight I see them coming very focused, being able to speed up a Gonzaga team that likes to take care of the ball and ultimately keeping this game within a couple of points at the very least. Even in a neutral environment that might feel like a home game, Gonzaga faces easily their hardest opponent of the year, and a win won’t be easy.

#4 Kentucky Wildcats vs #7 Gonzaga Bulldogs Best Bets

Kentucky vs Gonzaga Prediction: Gonzaga Wins, Kentucky Covers, Over 166.5

Best Bets: Kentucky +6.5 (-115) BetOnline

This is simply too many points for this Kentucky basketball team. They are fast, they are excellent shooters, and they have the personnel to hang with the Gonzaga.

Full transparency, I have not booked this yet. I am going to wait, hoping it keeps creeping up, giving us +7/7.5 to get over the three possessions threshold. If I’m wrong and it moves down, I don’t see much difference between +6 and +6.5. The Wildcats and Zags are going to run up and down the floor with plenty of possessions for both sides. Personally, I think this favors Kentucky who have more scoring options offensively.

Kentucky shoots tons of 3s, ranking Top 100 in 3P Rate, knocking down nearly 37% from downtown as a team. Gonzaga has a particularly solid perimeter defense, but they still give up tons of shots from deep. You don’t want to do that against Kentucky who are coming off a 7/27 shooting outing from beyond the arc.

With the Wildcats in a bounce back spot, and Gonzaga potentially looking ahead, I see Kentucky keeping this within 6 points for sure, and probably winning outright.

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