playing rare side/total of the same game.
pepperdine (+18.5) over gonzaga
pepperdine over 158.5
kind of a correlated play. this series has been played at a breakneck pace regardless, whether games have been close or not. but if pepperdine gets down early, they will push the tempo even more. although this is a big game in the wcc, i dont think pepperdine is gonna all the sudden play defense. they havent done it in 5 years. they are what they are: an explosive offense with no defense.
as for the total- this writeup is from a month ago when they had their 1st meeting this season:
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waves already abhor defense, but when they face gonzaga, its like they dont even give defense a passing thought. the pace of the last four or five games in this series has been unreal. just up and down, 3s from all over the place, and little defense to speak of.
last years meetings:
gonzaga 92 pepperdine 72 (gonzaga led 50-28 at halftime. pepperdine hit 8 3s, gonzaga hit 9. gonzaga shot 54% for the gm)
gonzaga 78 pepperdine 63 (maybe some will remember this game. ostensibly, the final score indicates a defensive struggle. that wasnt the case. just a weird, weird 2h. gonzaga led 51-42 at halftime. 93 pts at half. but a strange 2h led to just a 27-21 2h and ultimately a 78-63 final. zags still managed to hit 12 3s in that game)
2001-2002 meetings:
gonzaga 91 pepperdine 78 (50-35 at halftime. mcgowan goes for 26 in a loss that was closer than the final)
gonzaga 88 pepperdine 79 (nothing special. just your regular old waves/zags shootout. gonzaga again shoots 50% from the field)
gonzaga 96 pepperdine 90 (this was the wcc championship game. defense in a title game with an ncaa berth on the line? lmao. not with these teams. 45-44 at halftime. pepperdine hits 12 3s, gonzaga hits 10)
all in all, if not for a fluke 2h in one of last yrs meetings (game was 51-42 halftime in that one), we'd be looking at 5 straight games where these guys just trade baskets and play matador defense. hell if you want to take it back a year further, the finals were 93-79 and 82-69. these guys just play run-n-gun basketball.
also doesnt hurt that pepperdine is 70% from the line this year and gonzaga is 75%.
pepperdine (+18.5) over gonzaga
pepperdine over 158.5
kind of a correlated play. this series has been played at a breakneck pace regardless, whether games have been close or not. but if pepperdine gets down early, they will push the tempo even more. although this is a big game in the wcc, i dont think pepperdine is gonna all the sudden play defense. they havent done it in 5 years. they are what they are: an explosive offense with no defense.
as for the total- this writeup is from a month ago when they had their 1st meeting this season:
======
waves already abhor defense, but when they face gonzaga, its like they dont even give defense a passing thought. the pace of the last four or five games in this series has been unreal. just up and down, 3s from all over the place, and little defense to speak of.
last years meetings:
gonzaga 92 pepperdine 72 (gonzaga led 50-28 at halftime. pepperdine hit 8 3s, gonzaga hit 9. gonzaga shot 54% for the gm)
gonzaga 78 pepperdine 63 (maybe some will remember this game. ostensibly, the final score indicates a defensive struggle. that wasnt the case. just a weird, weird 2h. gonzaga led 51-42 at halftime. 93 pts at half. but a strange 2h led to just a 27-21 2h and ultimately a 78-63 final. zags still managed to hit 12 3s in that game)
2001-2002 meetings:
gonzaga 91 pepperdine 78 (50-35 at halftime. mcgowan goes for 26 in a loss that was closer than the final)
gonzaga 88 pepperdine 79 (nothing special. just your regular old waves/zags shootout. gonzaga again shoots 50% from the field)
gonzaga 96 pepperdine 90 (this was the wcc championship game. defense in a title game with an ncaa berth on the line? lmao. not with these teams. 45-44 at halftime. pepperdine hits 12 3s, gonzaga hits 10)
all in all, if not for a fluke 2h in one of last yrs meetings (game was 51-42 halftime in that one), we'd be looking at 5 straight games where these guys just trade baskets and play matador defense. hell if you want to take it back a year further, the finals were 93-79 and 82-69. these guys just play run-n-gun basketball.
also doesnt hurt that pepperdine is 70% from the line this year and gonzaga is 75%.