The Gonzaga Bulldogs take on the Washington State Cougars in Pullman, WA. Tip-off is set for 10 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network.
Gonzaga is favored by 17.5 points on the spread with a moneyline of -2400. The total is set at 155.5 points.
Here’s my Gonzaga vs. Washington State prediction and college basketball picks for January 15, 2026.
Gonzaga vs Washington State Prediction
My Pick: Gonzaga -17.5
My Gonzaga vs Washington State best bet is on the Bulldogs to cover the spread. For all of your college basketball bets, be sure to find the best lines by using our live NCAAB odds page.
Gonzaga vs. Washington State Odds
| Gonzaga Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-17.5 -115 | 155.5 -105o / -115u | -2400 |
| Washington State Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+17.5 -105 | 155.5 -105o / -115u | +1200 |
- Gonzaga vs Washington State spread: Gonzaga -17.5
- Gonzaga vs Washington State over/under: 155.5 points
- Gonzaga vs Washington State moneyline: Gonzaga -2400, Washington State +1200
Gonzaga vs Washington State College Basketball Betting Preview
Gonzaga Basketball
Gonzaga has put together a strong start to the second half of the season, as the Bulldogs are 5-0 in the WCC and are coming off back-to-back impressive home wins over the last two weeks.
Graham Ike has played really good ball in the post, as he posted a double-double last time out with 34 points and 11 rebounds. He was named WCC Player of the Week in the process.
The Bulldogs have also received a ton of production offensively from Braden Huff, who's averaging 17.8 points per game.
Also, Braeden Smith and Mario Saint-Supery have been excellent generators of offense in both scoring and assists.
Gonzaga leads the country in points in the paint, averaging nearly 49 per game, and it figures to clean up on the interior in this matchup against Washington State.
The defense has also been extremely efficient for Gonzaga, which ranks 12th nationally in KenPom’s adjusted defensive efficiency metric.
On-ball defending, guarding the 3-point line and corralling rebounds really make it tough for opposing offenses to operate, and the defensive improvements have been a big driver to Gonzaga winning 10 in a row.
Washington State Basketball
Wazzu has won five of seven and nearly completed a huge comeback at Saint Mary’s its last time out. The Cougs rallied to close the gap against the Gaels to as little as three points on three different occasions, but they couldn't get any closer.
Freshman Ace Glass has played really good basketball of late for the Cougs, as he leads the team in scoring with 16 points per game. ND Okafor is a force in the paint on both ends of the floor and three other Cougars average at least nine points.
Wazzu shoots a lot of 3s, and if more guys can consistently start knocking them down, the Cougs could be a feisty out in WCC play the rest of the way.
Defensively, Washington State is middle of the road, as its performance has been fairly inconsistent on that side of the ball. The Cougars don’t force a ton of turnovers and don’t defend the 3-point line all that well.
They are, however, an excellent defensive rebounding team, and David Riley’s group has been good at forcing teams into deliberate offensive possessions. They're going to have to be at their best if they're going to compete with Gonzaga here.
Gonzaga vs. Washington State Betting Analysis
The post-battle between Okafor and Ike will be awesome to watch in this one.
Okafor is by far the best rim protector the Cougs have, but the Zags are going to go after him in the paint. There's a real chance the Cougs have to pivot if Okafor gets into foul trouble early, at which point it'll be very tough for Washington State to defend in the paint.
The Zags lead the country in points in the paint by a wide margin, and I expect Washington State to struggle defending the interior.
Washington State is going to shoot a ton of 3s, but there hasn’t been much consistency in terms of making those looks. Rihards Vavers and Eemeli Yalaho are the primary options, but I worry about the Cougs finding open looks against this defense.
We could see a ton of contested jumpers, and with Gonzaga being one of the best defensive rebounding teams in the country, expect empty possessions for Washington State.
Washington State struggles to force turnovers on defense, and it struggles to hold onto the basketball on the offensive end.
Unforced errors, costly throwaways and other miscellaneous gaffes have really seen the turnovers pile up, and I would assume that Gonzaga ramps up the pressure here once it smells blood in the water.
Gonzaga has dominated this series, as the Bulldogs are 14-3 against Washington State during the Mark Few tenure. They're winners of seven straight.
I look for Gonzaga to dominate this game in the paint and pull away late to win and cover this number.
My Pick: Gonzaga -17.5
