Sweet 16: Gonzaga vs Arkansas 3/24/22 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds

The Gonzaga Bulldogs and Arkansas Razorbacks clash Thursday night in NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 college basketball action from Chase Center. Arkansas is 27-8 overall this year. The Razorbacks beat New Mexico State in the Second Round of the tourney. As for Gonzaga, they’re 28-3 on the season and coming off a Second-Round win over Memphis. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place. 

Arkansas did have one bad 1-5 run back in December/January, but otherwise they’ve avoided consecutive losses all season. The Razorbacks went into the national tournament on a rough 1-2 run though, falling to Tennessee and Texas A&M in that time. Arkansas then took out Vermont in the first round of the NCAA tourney. 

In the Second Round versus New Mexico State on Saturday, the Razorbacks hit a 27-17 run in the first half. Arkansas was outscored 27-31 the rest of the way during a 53-48 win. Tops in scoring was JD Notae with 18 points and eight steals, while Jaylin Williams added 10 points and 15 boards. 

Over on the Gonzaga side, they had a 1-2 run in early December but that’s been the team’s worst stretch of the season. The Bulldogs lost to Saint Mary’s on February 26, and since then they’ve hit a win streak over San Francisco, Saint Mary’s, Georgia State and Memphis.

Matched up against Memphis on Saturday, the Bulldogs were in trouble with a 31-41 deficit by the break. Gonzaga hit a 51-37 run the rest of the way to take the dramatic 82-78 comeback victory, though. Drew Timme put up 25 points and 14 rebounds while Andrew Nembhard added 23 points and five assists. 

PICK: I’m probably going to stick with Gonzaga but staying away. The Bulldogs weren’t exactly dominant against a tricky Memphis team on Saturday. Gonzaga was out-rebounded 38-40, however they were able to hit 51.7 percent of their shots with 18 team assists. It wasn’t the Bulldogs’ greatest effort, but they pulled through. 

As for Arkansas, they’ve gotten past a couple of tricky teams in the first two rounds themselves with wins over Vermont and New Mexico State. The Razorbacks can generally score pretty well this year, so Gonzaga is going to need to step on the gas quickly here. I think the Bulldogs can do it.