Bulldogs will battle for a big victory

SEATTLE – By this time last season, Gonzaga had wins over nationally ranked North Carolina, Texas and Washington.

Two seasons ago, the Zags toppled nationally ranked Maryland and Michigan State, and also knocked off Oklahoma State and Virginia before the end of December.

Three seasons ago, GU handled nationally ranked Washington, Georgia Tech and Oklahoma State before New Year’s Eve.

The season before that, the Bulldogs had December victories over nationally ranked Maryland and Missouri.

The current Zags don’t have a win of that magnitude yet, but then again, they’ve only had one chance against a nationally ranked foe, falling to Washington State 51-47 earlier this month. Their next opportunity comes against No. 11 Tennessee today in the Battle in Seattle at KeyArena.

Every game is important, but the Zags understand this one carries added significance. GU (9-3), which has dropped out of the rankings, figures to play just one more ranked opponent when it visits Memphis next month, unless West Coast Conference rival Saint Mary’s returns to the polls.

“They’re going to be an NCAA tournament team and they’ll probably be one of the top seeds,” sophomore guard Matt Bouldin said of Tennessee (11-1). “This would really build our resume if we get a win. We all know the importance of this game.”

The Bulldogs aren’t without quality wins. They won at Saint Joseph’s and beat Connecticut in Boston. They defeated Western Kentucky and Virginia Tech in Alaska. But none of those teams is receiving votes in the polls. Oklahoma (9-3), which beat GU in its last outing, and Texas Tech (6-5), a winner over Gonzaga in November, are also without a single poll vote.

“You don’t have an unlimited number of these games on your schedule and we let one slip away here against Washington State and the other night (against Oklahoma) we didn’t play particularly well,” head coach Mark Few said. “Now, we have another one and we need to take advantage of it.”

It won’t be easy.

The Volunteers are coming off an 82-75 road win over previously ranked Xavier. Their only loss came on a neutral floor to Texas, which handled the Volunteers’ relentless pressure defense and burned Tennessee in transition. Like GU, the Vols beat Western Kentucky on a neutral floor in Nashville, though Western Kentucky included the game on its season ticket package.

“We play fast-paced, we play a lot of guys and we push the ball up the floor,” Tennessee coach Bruce Pearl said. “When you do that, there are going to be a lot of possessions.”

Only guard Chris Lofton averages more than 25 minutes. Four players average between 13-15 points, including Lofton, JaJuan Smith, Tyler Smith and J.P. Prince, a transfer from Arizona who became eligible three games ago.

Lofton, the SEC player of the year in 2006-07, isn’t shooting with the phenomenal accuracy of his first three seasons (44 percent on 3-pointers), but he’s become a more complete player.

“He’s an overachieving guy that was overlooked for many years,” Pearl said. “He had no high-major offers other than us. He’s spent three years proving everybody wrong and now for the first time in his life he has to prove everybody right. And the other thing is, when you’re on a better team you have a few more weapons and it’s more of a blend.”

The Volunteers overcome their lack of size with dribble penetration and 3-point shooting. They’ve attempted 333 3-pointers, nearly a 100 more than opponents, and 320 free throws, 86 more than their competition. Tennessee also has 149 steals and 100 more assists (252) than turnovers (152).

“It’s going to be a tremendous challenge from a physical aspect. They’re bigger at every position,” Pearl said. “They’re a Top 25 team without (Josh) Heytvelt. With him and with him healthy, they could go on and have a great season. They have a number of guys coming off injuries so they’re still trying to define their roles and niches, but in the long run that will serve them well.”

Much of GU’s game-planning will revolve around handling the Vols’ pressure defense. Of GU’s 12 opponents, the obvious comparison is WKU, which “pressed a lot, but not to the extent that this team will,” Few said.

“They pressure every possession, when you’re taking the ball out under your basket, under their basket and on the sideline,” Few said. “It’s something you have to spend some time preparing for because you just don’t see it every day.”