The Gonzaga Bulldogs will meet the Houston Cougars in round two of the 2025 NCAA Tournament on Saturday, March 22, 2025. Both of these teams enjoyed double-digit victories in the first round of March Madness, with these two programs looking to earn a berth in the Sweet 16 here. Both teams in this Gonzaga vs Houston matchup have recent Final Four experience and a win here could be the springboard to another deep tourney run.
The latest college basketball odds have Houston favored by 5.5 points for this game from Wichita, KS. The total for the game has been set at 140.5 points. Continue reading to get our keys to this matchup and to find out who we like to advance to the Sweet 16.
Gonzaga Looks to Become Cinderella Story
The Gonzaga Bulldogs destroyed the Georgia Bulldogs in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, beating Georgia 89-68. Khalif Battle led the Bulldogs and scoring and rebounds with 24 points and eight boards in that victory. Now Gonzaga will set their sights on the top seed in the Midwest Region after many years of being one of the top seeds in their region in this tournament.
Gonzaga’s key to this game is to get the ball to Graham Ike in the paint and to keep him out of foul trouble. Ike is not only a great scorer in the post for the Bulldogs, but he can also pull attention from Houston’s perimeter defenders to set up shots from the outside. As long as he is on the floor and effective, Gonzaga has a chance to pull an upset in this game.
Houston Defense Riding High Entering Second Round
Houston had an easy time in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, crushing the SIU Edwardsville Cougars 78-40. Houston’s defense came into this tournament ranked second in the nation in scoring defense and their defense certainly came to play in round one. But the Cougars will face a tougher test on defense in this matchup with a spot in the Sweet 16 on the line.
Offensively, Houston will look for another efficient showing from Milos Uzan. Uzan made six of his seven shot attempts from the field against SIU Edwardsville, leading Houston with 16 points. Another hyper-efficient performance from him would give the Cougars the inside track to get to the Sweet 16.
Gonzaga vs Houston Prediction
Gonzaga +5.5 (-110) over Houston
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- Gonzaga will pose some matchup problems for Houston, especially in the paint.
- Gonzaga plays uptempo basketball and should be able to get Houston out of sorts.
