Gonzaga’s super sophs coming of age
LAS VEGAS – As co-captain, leading scorer, leading rebounder and resident senior mentor, Ronny Turiaf has plenty invested in this year’s Gonzaga University men’s basketball team.
Which is why the 6-foot-10 forward is as excited as anyone about the progress the young Bulldogs have made since late November when they showed their age in an ugly 89-72 loss to Illinois in the Wooden Tradition in Indianapolis.
“They just seem to learn so much,” Turiaf said on Saturday night, just moments after the 22nd-ranked Zags had upset previously unbeaten and No. 3-ranked Georgia Tech 85-73 in the nightcap of the Las Vegas Showdown doubleheader in Thomas & Mack Center.
“But they have too much talent and too much desire not to win games like this. I just feel blessed to be able to play around those guys and try to teach them and show them the way it’s done.”
Turiaf’s “they,” in this case, refers to Adam Morrison, Derek Raivio and Sean Mallon, the three sophomores who each played a major role in the nationally televised upset win over the Yellow Jackets (7-1).
Morrison, a 6-8 wing, finished with a team-high 24 points and five rebounds. Raivio, a 6-3 point guard, matched his career scoring high with 21 points and also contributed five rebounds, two assists and three steals in his best game as a Zag. And Mallon, a 6-9 forward, chipped in 11 points and six boards, as the Bulldogs (8-1) won their fifth straight since the debacle against Illinois in which Morrison, Raivio and Mallon all looked a bit frantic and out of their league.
After Saturday’s win over Tech, even Bulldogs coach Mark Few admitted to having some major misgivings about his team’s makeup prior to the Illinois game.
“I was commenting to the assistants when we walked out there against Illinois that we looked like a JV team,” Few said. “Against Illinois, we got out-toughed from the get-go and didn’t respond.”
The big problem, Few explained, was that his three sophomores had little or no experience in playing 30-plus minutes against a national-caliber team.
“They didn’t understand how tough and aggressive they needed to be as the main guys,” he added, “but after seeing the Illinois game, I think they understand that.
“The biggest lesson was really learned by some of our secondary guys last year – Derek and Adam and Sean – who got to sit back and watch last year as Blake (Stepp) and Cory (Violette) attacked and really went after guys.”
Almost lost in the contributions made by Morrison, Raivio and Mallon was another inspired effort by Turiaf, who played 30-plus minutes on the tender left ankle he sprained in the Bulldogs 54-52 win over Washington State earlier this month.
Despite grimacing frequently, limping badly at times and shooting horribly from the field, Turiaf still managed to put up a 17-point, 10-rebound double-double – the 18th of his career – and block two shots.
It helped, Turiaf said, that his teammates realized he still wasn’t completely healthy and did what they could to pick him up.
“My ankle was still bothering me and I was not shooting the ball very good,” he said, “but I still tried to get some rebounds, block some shots and get my teammates involved. And I think tonight my teammates saw that and picked up the slack for me.
“That’s part of the learning process, too.”
When questioned further about his bad ankle, Turiaf admitted he is “not even close to 100 percent” and doesn’t expect to heal completely in time for Tuesday’s 6 p.m. non-conference game against Eastern Washington in the Arena.
“It’s hard for me,” he added. “I know I can do much better, but when one part of your body is not responding, it’s frustrating. I’m just trying to do whatever I can to help my team right now.
“Tonight I had a pathetic night from the floor (5 for 15), but I did some other things, and I scored some free throws down the stretch. I know, in time, my ankle is going to get better, so teams better watch out when I get healthy again.”