Gonzaga Nation

Betting odds, point spread for Gonzaga Bulldogs vs. Bucknell Bison men’s college basketball game

The Bulldogs are 32.5-point favorites over the Bison

Cole Forsman

Gonzaga Bulldogs head coach Mark Few.
Gonzaga Bulldogs head coach Mark Few. / Photo by Erik Smith, Myk Crawford
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The Gonzaga Bulldogs (8-3) are back in the McCarthey Athletic Center for one more tune-up game against the Bucknell Bison (4-7) this Saturday at 6 p.m. PT/9 p.m. ET.

Coming off consecutive losses to Kentucky and UConn, the Zags entered the week with a pair of opportunities to get right at home before they head back out on the road for one more high-profile matchup against UCLA on Dec. 28. Mark Few and company took advantage of a season-high 25 points from Braden Huff, parlayed it with a 20-point outing from Graham Ike and another Ryan Nembhard double-double (18 points, 10 assists) to come out with a 102-72 victory over Nicholls on Wednesday in their first home game in 28 days. 

“[Nicholls is] like a pressure team, and so it’s hard to swing the ball,” Gonzaga head coach Mark Few said after the game. “I think our guys settled in and did a better job of looking through that, finding the cutter, finding the slip guy, finding the post. And our posts were actually posting up for the most part, wanting the ball in there.”

On a short turnaround, Gonzaga prepares to take on a Bucknell squad that's been sitting on a 5-game losing streak since its last contest on Dec. 8 — a 74-70 overtime loss at Radford.

The Bison entered the 2024-25 campaign with expectations to compete for the Patriot League regular season title after finishing tied for second in the conference standings last season. Second-year head coach John Griffin returned six of his top seven scorers from that 20-win squad, including 7-foot-tall junior Noah Williamson. The Latvian center is second on his team in scoring at 13.4 points and is adept at applying foul pressure — Williamson averages 7.1 free throws and is top 20 in the country in fouls drawn per 40 minutes, per KenPom. 

That said, the Bison rank No. 244 in the NET and No. 258 on KenPom.com. While Griffen’s squad might compete for an America East title in March, sportsbooks don’t expect the Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, based school to put up much of a fight against the Zags on Saturday. For the second straight game, Gonzaga is favored by more than 30 points inside the comforts of the McCarthey Athletic Center.

Having a rest disadvantage rest hasn’t hindered the Bulldogs thus far this season — they’re 3-1 against the spread in those situations this season — however, the Bison have been road warriors when it comes to covering the spread. Bucknell is 5-0 against the spread in true road games and 4-0 in those situations when it’s the underdog. The Bison have also covered in all three instances when they have a rest advantage.

Meanwhile, the Bulldogs are looking to cover the spread for the first time since the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament. Gonzaga is 2-2 against the spread in games played at the Kennel this season and 3-2 as the home favorite. 

Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook

Gonzaga vs. Bucknell Betting Odds, TV Channel

Spread: Gonzaga -32.5 (-110)

Over/Under: 153.5 (-105)

Moneyline: N/A

ATS: Gonzaga (6-5)   Bucknell (7-4)

Game time: Saturday, Dec. 21 at 6 p.m. PST/9 p.m. ET

TV Channel: KHQ/SWX (Spokane area)*
ESPN+ (out of market)
FOX13+ (Seattle)
FOX12+ (Portland)

*Spokane, Yakima, Tri-Cities, Eastern Washington, Coeur d'Alene and North Idaho, Missoula, Great Falls, Butte, Bozeman and Helena will experience blackouts on KHQ/SWX broadcasts. Fans in these areas can watch at swxlocalsports.com.

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Cole Forsman
COLE FORSMAN

Cole Forsman is a reporter for Gonzaga Bulldogs On SI. Cole holds a degree in Journalism and Sports Management from Gonzaga University.

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