Jakob Poeltl has been a major part of Utah’s success throughout the season. (Getty)
Gonzaga took care of business on Thursday, shutting down a recently-resurgent Seton Hall squad with relative ease int he Round of 64. Utah, meanwhile, held its own as well, dispatching Fresno State.
Now, these two teams, who have both returned to form in the past few weeks, face off on Saturday night. Don’t overlook this one. It’s going to be good. And competitive. And possibly very high-scoring.
March is the best.
Read on for a complete breakdown of the second round tilt, including a look at the odds and how to live stream the game.
Date: Saturday, March 19
Time: 7:27 p.m. ET
Location: Pepsi Center, Denver, Colorado
TV Channel: TNT
Live Stream: Click here for a complete live stream breakdown
Line: Even via OddsShark
Game Preview: Let’s talk about Gonzaga for a second.
This is a team, just a few weeks ago, was on the outside looking in at the NCAA Tournament field. The Bulldogs needed to win their conference championship (you know, again), in order to make the Tournament and St. Mary’s was no easy opponent.
In fact, St. Mary’s had defeated the Zags twice during the regular season.
But, despite that, or maybe because of it, Gonzaga won. Then they won on Thursday, nothing their eighth consecutive first-round game with a solid takedown of Seton Hall and an impressive 21-point, 16-rebound performance from Domantas Sabonis.
The sophomore is going to be the key tonight.
He’s an imposing figure, just on sight, but his talent is also undeniable. Sabonis has been the spark for the Zags throughout the ups and downs of this season and he’ll need to hold his own against Utah’s Jakob Poeltl.
After all, the pair are both finalists for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award and regularly finish with double-doubles.
Get ready for a battle on the boards in this one.