The first Final Four ticket will be punched on Saturday when the Gonzaga Bulldogs meet the Texas Tech Red Raiders in a 2019 NCAA Tournament Elite 8 showdown. Gonzaga (33-3), the 1-seed in the West Region, cruised by Florida State, 72-58, on Thursday to advance to Saturday's game. The Bulldogs have reached the Final Four only once in program history (2017). Texas Tech (29-6), the 3-seed, suffocated Michigan in the Sweet 16 in a 63-44 win, and the Red Raiders have never reached the Final Four. Tipoff is scheduled for 6:09 p.m. ET at the Honda Center in Anaheim. The Bulldogs are favored by 4.5 in the latest Gonzaga vs. Texas Tech odds, while the over-under for total points scored is 139 after wavering between 137 and 140 during the week. Before making any Gonzaga vs. Texas Tech picks of your own, see the 2019 NCAA Tournament predictions from the SportsLine Projection Model.

This model, which simulates every game 10,000 times, has raked in the winnings for those following its picks. Over the past two years, the SportsLine Projection Model has returned over $4,000 to $100 players on its top-rated college basketball picks and entered the postseason on a strong 11-5 run on all top-rated college basketball plays. It's also on fire in the 2019 NCAA Tournament, calling all but two of the Sweet 16 teams this year. Anyone who has followed it is way up.

Now, the model has honed in on Gonzaga vs. Texas Tech. We can tell you it is leaning over, and it also has an against-the-spread pick that cashes in well over 50 percent of simulations. That pick is available only at SportsLine.

The model knows that Gonzaga boasts a well-balanced offensive attack. Even though Rui Hachimura, a junior forward who is widely considered an NBA lottery pick, leads the Bulldogs in scoring at 19.6 points per game, Gonzaga has three other players who average double-digits: Brandon Clarke (16.9), Zach Norvell Jr. (15.1) and Josh Perkins (10.9). Those four account for over 62 points per game.

But the Bulldogs have been getting the job done defensively too. They rank third in blocks per game (5.5) and sixth in field goal percentage defense (38.7). In Thursday's win over Florida State, Gonzaga allowed the Seminoles to shoot just 39.3 percent from the field, including an ice-cold 15.0 percent on 3-pointers, and forced Florida State into 14 turnovers. 

But just because the Bulldogs have been dominant in the 2019 NCAA bracket does not guarantee they will cover the Gonzaga vs. Texas Tech spread on Saturday.

The Red Raiders have the kind of lockdown defense to beat the Bulldogs. In the NCAA Tournament, opponents are shooting just 35.6 percent against the Red Raiders, including just 22.1 percent on 3-pointers. And in Thursday's win over Michigan, Texas Tech allowed the Wolverines just one made 3-pointer in 19 attempts.

Sophomore Jarrett Culver gives the Red Raiders an elite-level talent to feed on the offensive end. The Big 12 Player of the Year and projected lottery pick in the NBA Draft is averaging 18.9 points, 6.4 rebounds and 3.8 assists this season while shooting 48.4 percent from the field. Against the Wolverines' elite defense, he scored a game-high 22 points on 9-of-19 shooting.

So who wins Texas Tech vs. Gonzaga? And which side of the spread hits in well over 50 percent of simulations? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the Texas Tech vs. Gonzaga spread to jump on, all from the advanced model that's up more than $4,000 on its top-rated college basketball picks, and find out.