The Gonzaga Bulldogs did exactly what they needed to do by beating San Francisco, 95-75, and lock down the second seed in the WCC Tournament.
Now, the Zags get a bye until the near end. Most importantly, they will be heading to Las Vegas arguably riding their best stretch of basketball this season (two games, which isn’t saying very much).
Here are some more thoughts from the game:
1) Little Ben Gregg, have yourself an evening. LBG stepped up in the biggest way possible in his last regular season Gonzaga game. Gregg finished with 23 points and hit three threes in the process. San Francisco gave him all the room beyond the arc, but after a couple of missed shots, Gregg started to make them play. The hustle was there, as usual, for LBG, but seeing him hit those threes, which he has struggled to do all season, is a great sign heading into the postseason.
2) Considering that Gonzaga had the game safely in hand for most of it, it was still rather nice to see Ismalia Diagne get a few minutes in the first half. Diagne more than earned his spot in the rotation, even if it is at the very bottom of it, after that output in the win over Santa Clara.
3) Shot out to the Gonzaga defense, which had a few missed looks early on but then pretty quickly just clamped the Dons down. San Francisco just couldn’t get anything going, especially their leading scorer Malik Thomas.
4) Turns out when you are able to hit threes the entire game comes much easier. Gonzaga went 11-for-24 from beyond the arc, which considering their season mark is approximately 10 percentage points lower than that means we probably shouldn’t expect it every game. The Zags ended up posting their fifth-highest offensive efficiency this season.
5) Gonzaga essentially punched its ticket to the NCAA Tournament last night. The analytics and the history of the team were probably always going to play an outsized role in determining whether or not they’d end up an at-large. With two more Quad 1 wins under the belt, Gonzaga can probably lose the first game it plays in the WCC Tournament and still rest easily for an at-large appeareance.
6) Watching the development of Nolan Hickman this season has been something else. It has come with its lumps and valleys for sure, but last night Hickman showcased why he can be so dangerous. His three-point shot is there and he is one of the craftier and patient drivers to the hoop. Strong guard play is always a must in the NCAA Tournament, and with the backcourt of HIckman and Ryan Nembhard, Gonzaga is in a good spot.
7) I would argue that the past two games are probably the best back-to-back games Gonzaga has played all season on both sides of the ball. They went down early to Santa Clara but the offense poured it on and the defense made it all possible. Last night against San Francisco, the Dons never were able to make a real push to keep it competitive. Santa Clara and USF might not be Saint Mary’s, but they are the third- and fourth-best teams in the WCC. Going into the WCC Tournament you want the team feeling good–they probably haven’t felt this good since the opening night win over Baylor.