Zags leery of Indiana’s big fella, but hot-shooting guards also a big threat

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – It has been quite some time since the Gonzaga Bulldogs have faced a post player as skilled, productive and efficient as Indiana’s D.J. White.

“Obviously, he’s the best post we’ve faced since we started (West Coast) Conference play,” Zags freshman Matt Bouldin said of the Hoosiers’ 6-foot-9, 251-pound junior center, who is averaging a team-best 13.7 points and seven rebounds a game.

But Bouldin was quick to add that keeping track of Indiana’s quick, hot-shooting guards will be every bit as crucial as stopping White, when the two teams meet tonight at approximately 7 in the opening round of the NCAA West Regional men’s basketball tournament.

“We’re going to have our hands full as guards, too,” he explained, “because their guards can really shoot it. They can all take it to the basket, they’re all really tough and they’re all really confident.”

Seniors Roderick Wilmont and Earl Calloway are the old hands in first-year coach Kelvin Sampson’s backcourt and will play key roles for the Hoosiers (20-10), who come into tonight’s Arco Arena showdown with a No. 7 seed.

Wilmont, a 6-4, 203-pounder, is IU’s second-leading scorer, averaging 12.5 points. Calloway, a 6-3, 173-pounder, leads the team in assists with an average of 4.3 per game and is also averaging 9.4 points per game.

The third starter in the Hoosiers’ deep and balanced backcourt is 6-1 freshman Armon Bassett, who is averaging 9.7 points and 3.1 assists. A.J. Ratliff, a 6-3 junior backup, has also been a major contributor, averaging 9.8 points.

Wilmont and Ratliff are both shooting better than 40 percent from 3-point range – a main reason the Hoosiers led the Big Ten Conference in 3-point field-goal percentage (38.4).

“One of the main things they like to do is take shots in transition,” said senior guard Derek Raivio, who is averaging a team-high 18.2 points for the 10th-seeded Zags (23-10). “The Big Ten, traditionally, is a kind of slow-down, grind-it-out conference. But this team, from what I’ve seen on films, like to get up and down the court and shoot 3s.

“Even with a hand in their face, they’re going to get ‘em up, so we’ve got to really get up into them on the perimeter.”

Just how well the Bulldogs do that will probably go a long way in determing tonight’s outcome, according to Jeremy Pargo.

“With them, you’ve got to stop 3-pointers, before you stop twos,” said the Zags’ sophomore point guard. “They’ve got some great shooters on their team, and I’m pretty sure they’re going to do what they can to get their shots.

“They’re all fast, they move the ball well and they’re athletic guys, so they can get in the lane and finish. But their main focus in on knocking down 3s, so we’re going to try to negate that first.”

Wilmont, who has made 70 of the team-high 179 3-pointers he has taken, is also the Hoosiers’ emotional leader.

“Rod is an emotional kid,” Sampson said. “And we’re not a good enough team to play without that. Rod gives us a little bit of swagger.”

But that swagger, Sampson added, can sometimes be compromised by a rare off shooting night.

“The thing I’ve had to consistently get on Rod about is, ‘Don’t let your game be tied to your made baskets.’ If you notice, when Rod isn’t making baskets, he isn’t rebounding. That should tell you how we play some times.”