Gonzaga hopes to slow Dons’ gifted guards
SAN FRANCISCO – Mark Few hopes San Francisco’s gifted backcourt trio of Armondo Surratt, Jerome Gumbs and Dommanic Ingerson plays down a bit tonight when the unpredictable Dons entertain Few’s sixth-ranked Gonzaga Bulldogs in a West Coast Conference showdown at War Memorial Gymnasium.
But GU’s seventh-year coach knows that is probably a pipe dream.
“They have some really quick, athletic guards that are playing up and down,” Few said of the Dons (7-10 overall, 3-1 in the WCC), who moved into sole possession of third place in the conference following Saturday’s 62-50 win over Portland. “And when they play up, they’re really dangerous.
“They’re as talented as any guards in the country – just not as consistent. But I’m sure we’ll get their best and most pumped up game. We just can’t let them get going.”
Surratt, a 6-foot junior transfer from Miami, is averaging 13.8 points and 5.5 assists per game and is described by Few as “a national-caliber point guard.” Gumbs, who was instrumental in last year’s 73-70 upset of the Zags, and Ingerson, both seniors, have combined to average nearly 20 points and eight rebounds.
In addition, the Dons boast a productive low-blocks presence in 6-8 junior forward Alan Wiggins and 6-9 senior center Jason Wallace-Carter, who have combined for an average of 22.4 points and 13.1 rebounds.
“Wiggins, I liked him last year,” Few said, “and he’s much improved. He and Carter really took it to us inside last year.”
Few’s league-leading Bulldogs (15-3, 5-0) survived a 64-63 scare from San Diego on Saturday and come in having won six straight since losing at Memphis in late December.
GU’s Adam Morrison, the nation’s top Division-I scorer, was held to just 16 points by USD on Saturday, and Few expects him to once again be the focal point of San Francisco’s defense.
“Adam’s like Jesse James right now,” Few said. “Everybody’s coming in and getting after him. You’ll see a lot of junk defenses (from USF) to try to slow him down. But people have tried everything, so it won’t be anything new to Adam.”
Morrison’s scoring average slipped to 27.6 points after the narrow win over San Diego, but that didn’t seem to matter to the 6-8 junior, who was hounded all night by Toreros defensive stopper Corey Belser.
“Late in the second half, we used me as a decoy,” Morrison explained. “Nobody is going to help off me, so I just started rubbing off J.P. (Batista) and he went to work (scoring 16 second-half points).
“Obviously, Belser’s not going to help off me, because he wanted to stop me – Stop Morrison! Stop Morrison! But we were just trying to win the game, and that’s what happened.”