#3 Gonzaga Looks To Right Ship vs. #16 Alabama

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Gonzaga's Recent Struggles

It is really bold of me to say that losing a single game to a top-five, blue-blood program like Duke qualifies as "struggling," but this is Gonzaga, and any time this team takes a loss it is shocking. Gonzaga lost to the Blue Devils, but then 1-5 Tarleton State gave the Bulldogs a run for their money in their own house, with Gonzaga winning 64-55 and Drew Timme only notching 10 points.

It was a very poor shooting night for the 'Zags, something that they certainly are not used to. The Bulldogs lead the nation in shooting at 55.2%, so what in the world is happening with Gonzaga? After they whipped up on then-No. 2 UCLA in an 83-63 rout, they couldn't stop Paolo Banchero and the Blue Devils from handing them their first loss. The next thing you know, they are barely escaping Tarleton, turning the ball over 16 times against a terrible Texans team.

The biggest concern has to be the fact that the two best players on Gonzaga aren't leading the team in scoring each and every night as they should be. Preseason Naismith award favorite Timme needs to be scoring close to 20 per game in order for this team to perform how they should, and top-recruit Chet Holmgren needs to stuff the stat sheet as well.

Gonzaga has 99 consecutive appearances in the top-25 but will need to play much better if they want to stay that way. I think they will because this team is far too talented not to.

Crimson Tide Look To Take Advantage

Alabama is forever known as a football school, but in recent seasons, their basketball team has really made a program out of itself. The Crimson Tide is ranked No. 16 in the nation and has a very exciting group of players that can compete against anybody. They are 6-1 on the season, crushing the Miami Hurricanes 96-64 last time out. They had a bad loss to Iona, but they have since put that loss behind them and are playing great basketball again.

If there is any time that you want to face Gonzaga, it could be right now with their recent struggles. Gonzaga plays their best defense down below with Timme and Holmgren, so Alabama could take advantage of their perimeter defense. Still, Gonzaga has a top-10 defense in the nation, so they will be hard-pressed no matter what. On the other side, Alabama ranks 86th in defensive efficiency.

Jaden Shackelford has been lightning in a bottle for the Crimson Tide, scoring 18 points per game on 41.9% shooting. He also hauls in 6.4 rebounds per game and has really been their best player this season

Alabama vs. Gonzaga Prediction

Alabama is a really good team, and this is being played on a neutral court. However, I have to roll with the Bulldogs in this one to get back on track and start another long winning streak of dominance. They are 12-5 ATS in neutral-site games, even though they lost to Duke in their last one. I think they can stop the 3-pt shooting of Alabama enough to grab a solid victory.

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