Zags can own WCC outright with win
PORTLAND – Gonzaga coach Mark Few figures Portland learned a few things about his 12th-ranked Bulldogs when the two teams met earlier this year in GU’s McCarthey Athletic Center.
For starters, the Pilots (15-13 overall, 4-9 in the West Coast Conference) discovered they can hang with the conference-leading Zags (21-4, 11-2) as well as anyone in the WCC. Few expects them to draw heavily from that revelation in tonight’s important rematch, which tips off at 8 in the Chiles Center.
Gonzaga, which earned a share of is fifth consecutive WCC regular-season championship by edging San Francisco 75-73 at home on Saturday, can win the title outright by beating the Pilots in tonight’s WCC finale for both teams.
The game will play out in front of a national television audience on ESPN2 and an expected sellout crowd of more than 5,000, which should make for another wild setting.
“It’ll be a zoo down there,” Few said. “It’s their Senior Night, plus it’s always a tense atmosphere whenever we come to town. They’ll come and play with a lot of confidence, especially after the way they played us at our place.
“They probably feel like they have a real legitimate chance of knocking us off.”
And why not?
The Pilots blew into GU’s new arena back in late January, withstood a terrific start by the Bulldogs, who made their first six shots, and forged a 58-55 lead early in the second half before falling 91-79. Junior guard Pooh Jeter paced Portland with 22 points in that game, throwing in 6 of 11 3-pointers. Teammate Donald Wilson, another junior guard, who came in averaging just less than nine points per game, added 17 for the Pilots on 3-for-4 shooting from 3-point range.
Portland has dropped four of six games – including its last three – since losing at GU, but Few puts no stock in those numbers.
“Guys that aren’t supposed to make 3s make 3s against us,” he said, in reference to the 13 long-range baskets the Pilots made in that earlier meeting. “Again, I think we see a little bit different effort and a little different intensity than other teams in our league see.
“We’ll get Portland’s best shot, and their best shot is pretty darn good.”
Few said Jeter, a 5-foot-10, 175-pounder who is averaging a team-high 15.6 points and 3.2 assists, presents a difficult matchup for his team.
“He’s a tough guard, because he’s so quick and he has so much freedom,” Few explained. “He can beat you off the bounce, but, again, he was throwing them in from 30 feet at our place. It’s tough to handle players like that.
“And, traditionally, Donald Wilson has been hard for us, too.”
The Bulldogs offset Portland’s outside shooting with the inside muscle of J.P. Batista and Ronny Turiaf and some splendid foul shooting in their first meeting. Batista scored a career-high 25 points, Turiaf added 17 and the Zags converted 34 of 39 free throws.
Still, Pilots coach Michael Holton said the key to dealing with GU is to stop the Zags’ fast break.
“We want to limit their opportunity baskets and baskets in transition,” he said. “We will try to generate off our defense, transition offensive opportunities and, hopefully, find a rhythm that will allow us to have some type of momentum early in the game.”