Arrow-right Camera
Subscribe now
Gonzaga Basketball

Gonzaga’s depth challenged without injured Jesse Wade, Jeremy Jones

Gonzaga's Jesse Wade, left, and Jeremy Jones watch Saturday’s game from the bench due to lingering injuries. (Jesse Tinsley / The Spokesman-Review)

Gonzaga has been short on numbers most of the preseason and nothing changed in Saturday’s exhibition game against College of Idaho.

The Zags were without freshman guard Jesse Wade (shoulder) and junior forward Jeremy Jones. It didn’t have an impact on the scoreboard as Gonzaga rolled to a 96-67 win over the visiting Coyotes, ranked No. 7 in the NAIA Division II preseason poll.

Wade is sidelined with a shoulder that “sublexes here and there, so it’ll probably a while,” head coach Mark Few said.

Jones appeared to be wearing a cast to protect his right wrist and forearm.

“He got hit on the forearm and it swelled up really bad,” Few said. “It’s kind of a bizarre injury that doesn’t go away very well. His wrist doesn’t really function until they get that (swelling) down.”

Killian Tillie, who had 28 points against the Yotes, missed roughly a week or practice early on with a sprained ankle.

Wade was a prolific scorer and shooter at Davis High in Kaysville, Utah. He averaged 26.8 points and made 45 percent of his 3-pointers as a senior. His absence leaves the Zags with just four scholarship guards: senior Silas Melson, junior Josh Perkins, redshirt freshman Zach Norvell Jr. and 17-year-old true freshman Joel Ayayi.

Jones, who battled a high ankle sprain early in the 2017 season, is in the mix for playing time at the wing and forward positions. The Zags have a little more depth at those spots with Norvell, Corey Kispert, Rui Hachimura, Killian Tillie and Johnathan Williams.

“It is (hard to practice),” Few said. “It’s our cross to bear this year. We’ve had teams like that where we just don’t have a lot of bodies.”