Free throws mean free points
SAN FRANCISCO – Gonzaga’s Derek Raivio might finish his career as the most accurate free-throw shooter in the history of NCAA Division I basketball.
The Bulldogs’ 6-foot-3 senior guard went 10 for 10 from the foul line in Saturday’s 86-79 overtime win over West Coast Conference rival San Francisco, bringing his career total to 320 for 346 – or 92.4 percent.
That’s more than a full percentage point ahead of all-time leader Gary Buchanan, who made 324 of 355 free-throw attempts (91.3 percent) during his four-year stay at Villanova.
But of more immediate importance is the fact that Raivio was 8 for 8 from the line in Saturday’s extra period, helping the Zags secure a much-needed win and earning a heap of praise from friends and foes, alike.
“We take that for granted,” GU coach Mark Few said of Raivio’s remarkable performance from the foul line, where he has missed only 26 times in four years. “It’s amazing what he does at the free-throw line.
“You just count them in your head as being two, but I don’t think we give him enough credit for having the guts to get up there and make them every time – which he does.”
Raivio’s effort against USF boosted his WCC and school record of consecutive free throws to 56, 10 more than the record he set earlier in the year when he made 46 in a row.
When asked how many he has made in a row in practice, Raivio ventured back to his prep days at Vancouver’s Mountain View High School.
“It was in the 150s, or something like that,” he recalled, “but my coach made me stop, so I really don’t know.
“They’re just like freebies – like layups, you know. So when it’s a close game and they’re fouling, just give me the ball and I’ll knock them down.”
After getting a lucky bounce on his first free-throw try Saturday, Raivio drilled his next nine dead into the heart of the basket, creating nine nearly identical rippling effects of the net.
“It’s incredible,” teammate Matt Bouldin said of Raivio’s uncanny accuracy from the foul line. “When he gets there, it’s automatic. We could put nobody up there (on the lane) if we wanted, because he just doesn’t miss.”
USF’s Antonio Kellogg said “it’s like water,” when Raivio gets to the line.
“He might miss once every 20 games,” marveled the Dons’ immensely talented sophomore point guard. “But overall, I’ve been watching Raivio for a long time, and I like his game. I like the way he runs his team, his clock management and everything – how everybody is looking at him to bring everybody together.
“That’s a good point guard, and that’s what I’m striving to be – a point guard like him.”
Coach Jessie Evans tried to keep Raivio off the foul line during overtime, but the USF coach admitted his plan never came together.