Commentary: It’s clear, again, that Gonzaga men’s basketball is a level above UW

SPOKANE – Perhaps the disappointment is that this wasn’t really disappointing at all.

Maybe the real issue is that the Huskies aren’t terribly discouraged in what just took place at the McCarthey Athletic Center Friday night.

Washington stepped onto Gonzaga’s home court, played a respectable 40 minutes in its 77-60 loss, and well – what the heck else did you expect?

In the No. 18 Zags (7-3) you have a program that has advanced to the Sweet 16 or further in each of the past nine NCAA Tournaments – including two championship games. In the unranked Huskies (7-3), you have a program that has just one NCAA tourney appearance since 2011 and has finished 12th, 11th and tied for fifth in the Pac-12 standings in each of the past three years.

It’s hard for anyone to come into the Kennel and beat the Bulldogs. Gonzaga’s fans repeatedly create one of the most intimidating atmospheres in college basketball.

But in this regular meeting of the K-9s, it’s clear which one is the puppy. The Huskies – losers of their past seven vs. the Zags and 14 of their past 15 – can’t hang. And it’s fair to doubt if that will change anytime soon.

After the loss, I brought this up with Washington coach Mike Hopkins, in his fifth season at the Huskies’ helm.

“I think Husky fans are thinking, Gonzaga is ‘here’ (hand raised high) and Washington is ‘here’ (hand lower), and there aren’t signs that you’re closing the gap. How would you respond to that?”

“I just think, I feel we got snake bitten a little with some injuries – (guard) Noah Williams, (center) Franck Kepnang, our size, those types of things. But they’ve (Gonzaga) been, if you look at the rest of the country, they’ve been up here and everyone else has been down here,” Hopkins said. “They’ve created that. That’s why they’re one of the best teams in the country. That’s what you’re trying to be.”

It’s true that not having Williams – a starter who averaged more than 14 points per game at Washington State two years ago – since the first half of the season opener has hurt. And losing Kepnang – who was averaging nine points and 6.3 rebounds per game – for the season due to a knee injury was a roundhouse to the gut.

It also didn’t help that big men Braxton Meah and Jackson Grant each acquired two fouls early the first half for the Huskies on Friday. But fouls and injuries are commonplace. Always have been. Doesn’t explain away the sheer dominance Gonzaga (7-3) displayed for nearly 40 minutes.

Shooting efficiency? Gonzaga was 51.8% from the field (29 of 56) compared to the Huskies’ 40.4% (23 of 57). Free-throw disparity? Gonzaga took 21 foul shots compared to the Huskies’ nine. But when the Zags have a big man as crafty as Drew Timme – who finished with 22 points on 8-of-13 shooting from the floor – hacks are going to happen. And when you’re a destination program with a triple-decibel crowd behind you, mammoth scoring runs are going to happen, too.

“They’re incredible at it (making runs). That’s what they do,” said Washington guard PJ Fuller II, whose team got within three with 2 minutes, 33 seconds left in the first half before the Bulldogs scored nine of the next 11 points. “They did a hell of a job.”

The Zags have been doing a hell of a job for more than two decades, catapulting themselves into college basketball’s top tier. Their sharing the Evergreen State with UW magnifies how inconsistent the Huskies have been over that stretch.

Yes, Gonzaga men’s basketball is more than just the gold standard for what a midmajor can be – it’s a model that just about every team would want to emulate. Doesn’t mean fans should be content with what the Huskies are – or better put – are not doing.

What would you say to fans going forward? I followed with Hopkins.

“We just gotta keep getting better. I think that’s the biggest thing. You play preseason to see what you’re going to be in conference,” Hopkins said. “We’re going to have opportunities against Auburn, UCLA, Arizona, teams of this caliber, when you play on the road – it’s always difficult to play on the road. Hopefully, this experience helps us win those games.”

Maybe it will. The Huskies haven’t been devoid of success this season. They beat a 6-0 Saint Mary’s team in Anaheim, California, and handled a Colorado team that has knocked off two ranked opponents (at the time) in Tennessee and Texas A&M.

There’s potential there. But not Gonaga-level potential. That’s just reality – a reality that isn’t anywhere close to changing.