Foot injury will delay debut of just-eligible Gonzaga guard Eric McClellan

Eric McClellan’s wait just got a little longer.

McClellan sat out first semester and was freshly eligible for Gonzaga’s home game versus San Francisco tonight but his right foot had other ideas.

McClellan, a 6-foot-3 junior guard who was dismissed from Vanderbilt’s program last season after 12 games, began experiencing foot pain just before Christmas. The pain kept getting worse and X-rays revealed a small crack in a bone.

“Two years ago I broke my (right) foot at Vandy and it had bothered me at Tulsa (in 2012),” McClellan said. “This one is a slight crack (in a different bone). The (previous) one was three months.”

Coach Mark Few said McClellan will rest for two weeks and “hopefully we’ll take a peek and see it’s calmed down.”

McClellan has been wearing a protective boot equipped with a bone stimulator the last few days. He hasn’t practiced since Monday.

“I’m a big fast-food guy, candy guy,” he said. “I have to cut down on all that and start focusing on calcium and yogurt.”

When McClellan does play, the Zags expect a boost to their guard line.

“He’s a great energy guy, and I mean that as a full compliment,” senior guard Kevin Pangos said. “He comes in and whether it’s on defense or attacking the basket or even vocally, he’ll be great for us.

“We always go at it in practice. He’s a really good defender; he pushes me.”

McClellan played point guard at Tulsa, where he averaged 8.5 points as a freshman. He left Tulsa after the firing of coach Doug Wojcik. McClellan averaged 14.3 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.2 assists for Vanderbilt, playing both point and off the ball. He has 135 career turnovers and 105 assists.

“I bring another guy that can defend, another guy that can score at all three levels (3-pointer, mid-range and at the rim) and another guy that’s fast with the ball,” McClellan said.

Asked which end of the floor he expects to make the biggest impact, McClellan said, “I’ve been an offensive player my whole career. People know me more as a scorer, but I’ve really buckled down and worked on my defense. That’s a hard question. I’m good at both.”

The Zags were forced to adjust at the guard positions after point guard Josh Perkins’ broken jaw in late November. Silas Melson’s redshirt was pulled and Gary Bell Jr. has helped out at point guard. Pangos averaged 26.6 minutes in the first five games – some of which were blowouts – prior to Perkins’ injury. He’s averaged 35 minutes in GU’s last 10 games.

McClellan’s arrival could give Pangos additional rest and allow the senior to slide over to shooting guard at times.

“He’s a high-energy guy and a positive guy, kind of along the lines of Rob (Sacre),” Few said. “He can guard, he can rebound, he can go coast-to-coast quickly and finish, but he’s also put his time in repping out his stroke and he’s shot the ball really well. A lot of times you can shoot it well when you’re on the red squad and there isn’t a lot of ramifications but he’s put his time in.”

McClellan was suspended last January at Vanderbilt for an unspecified violation of academic policy. He was dismissed a few days later when the SEC school learned of a Sept. 17 misdemeanor theft charge.

“I realize I’ve made decisions and mistakes but I believe those don’t define me,” he said. “I probably couldn’t have landed in a better place. Nobody judges me; they trust me. It took a while when I first got here for (teammates) to trust me but I’m OK with that. I’ve learned from these guys and I think my relationships with my teammates are strong.”