No easy road for Gonzaga

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — It’s time to come home. I think I may have just sneezed out barbecue sauce.

Xavier (+8½) over Gon

zaga: This line is being listed like the regular season still has any relevance. While the 11th-seeded Musketeers have continually played up to their competition — knocking off No. 6 Maryland, No. 3 Florida State and No. 2 Arizona — the top-seeded Zags have struggled to resemble the one-loss power of the past few months. In the first round, Gonzaga led No. 16 South Dakota State by four at halftime. In the second round, they almost choked away a massive lead to Northwestern. On Thursday, the Bulldogs would have lost if not for West Virginia hitting fewer than 27 percent of its shots. Gonzaga still has more talent and balance, but a first trip to the Final Four won’t come easy. Oregon (+6½) over Kansas: The Jayhawks will win. Let’s just get that out of the way. They aren’t just playing better than any team in the country right now, but they have played better than just about every team for most of the season. But Bill Self has been here with extremely talented teams before, losing four times in the Elite Eight with Kansas as a No. 1 seed. The Jayhawks’ momentum only matters as much as the first few shots of the game. Oregon has the speed and talent to keep up in a shootout that won’t be decided until the final minutes. This season: 26-25-1

2011-16 record: 172-126-7

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