McNeese vs Gonzaga Pick & Prediction for Thursday

McNeese State takes on Gonzaga on Thursday, March 21, at 7:25 p.m. ET on TBS. Here's a McNeese vs Gonzaga pick and a prediction for Thursday.

The Gonzaga Bulldogs might have the toughest draw of any 5-seed in the NCAA Tournament because the McNeese State Cowboys are no joke.

Will Wade’s team only has three losses on the season, all of which came by single digits. The Cowboys are riding an 11-game winning streak out of the Southland Conference, too.

Gonzaga is not a weak team by any measure, and Mark Few saw his team steadily improve, as there were rumblings early in the year that the Bulldogs may not even go dancing. They shifted that narrative but got a bit unlucky with their first-round matchup after not winning the WCC.

McNeese loves to attack the rim, ranking sixth in frequency, per Shot Quality. Gonzaga may be holding opponents to 45.1% from 2-point range, but that number could be lucky. On the season, the Bulldogs rank below 110th in defensive points per possession at the rim. With that being the case, the Cowboys should score often on the interior.

McNeese also consistently knocks down the 3s it takes, shooting over 39% from deep. Gonzaga is allowing opponents to shoot 34% from outside and yields plenty of 3-point chances. The Bulldogs are one of the worst defensive teams beyond the arc, so even though the majority of points for the Cowboys will come from inside the arc, being the better 3-point shooting team won't hurt.

Lastly, the Cowboys get to the foul line much more often than the Bulldogs do. McNeese has a tendency to foul defensively, but if the Cowboys can limit their own fouling, they should have the free-throw advantage in the final box score.

Gonzaga also likes to take the ball inside, and the Bulldogs love to utilize the post-up. They are efficient in doing so, and use post-ups as much as any team in the country.

This is one area McNeese may struggle, as the Cowboys rank 326th in points per possession on post-ups defensively, per ShotQuality. Like Gonzaga, though, McNeese has still held opponents to a reasonable 2-point percentage.

McNeese gives up a ton of 3-point chances. However, as stated previously, Gonzaga will default to a post-up, and McNeese is better at shooting the rock from outside the perimeter. If Gonzaga needs a 3s, it can find one, but McNeese will still have the edge from deep.

Neither of these teams turns the ball over much at all, but the Cowboys are stealthy defensively and can get the ball in transition quickly. Shahada Wells is a name to watch — if you don't know him already.

Gonzaga is putrid at defending in transition. There will not be a ton of transition chances for Wells and company, but look for McNeese to potentially own the turnover margin as well.

The must-have app for college basketball bettors

The best NCAAB betting scoreboard

Free picks from proven pros

Live win probabilities for your bets

DOWNLOAD NOW

McNeese has its issues on the interior, but this Gonzaga team does not have many other areas to maintain an advantage. Gonzaga is favored to win for a reason, but do not expect the Cowboys to go away quietly.

Bet McNeese against the spread to +4.

Pick: McNeese +6.5 (Play to +4)