Fresh start: Gonzaga’s Dusty Stromer in rare company starting season opener

Dusty Stromer is the newest member of a small fraternity of Gonzaga players in the starting lineup for the first game of their true freshmen seasons.

The list has eight names since the Zags’ improbable run to the 1999 Elite Eight: Stromer, Chet Holmgren (2022), Jalen Suggs (2021), Anton Watson (2020), Corey Kispert (2018), Elias Harris (2010), Adam Morrison (2004) and Blake Stepp (2001).

Stromer started the Zags’ first two games after Eastern Washington transfer Steele Venters suffered a season-ending knee injury in practice a few days before Friday’s season opener against Yale.

The 6-foot-6 Stromer has attempted just seven shots while scoring 10 points, grabbing five rebounds and committing only one turnover in 49 minutes. He’s been solid at the defensive end.

“I was definitely nervous (starting the 2019-20 opener versus Alabama State),” Watson said, “but I feel like after 20 seconds of playing, you just play. Dusty has done a good job. You just play hard and he’s been playing super hard, and he brings effort and energy. That’s what we need out of him every single night.”

Stromer has supplied those intangibles and more. The Southern California native has drained 2 of 5 3-pointers, dug out loose balls and contributed on the break.

There’s obviously pressure starting as a true freshman for a nationally ranked team, but the Zags have realistic expectations. They’re asking Stromer to do his part and not reinvent the position or try to carry the team. He’s shown poise beyond his 20 years and seems to be a natural fit in Gonzaga’s system.

Gonzaga point guard Ryan Nembhard was a starter from the get-go in his two seasons at Creighton. He had 15 points and 10 assists vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff on opening night in 2021-22.

“It’s tough, but at same time I feel like, who doesn’t want to start at a program like this and play big minutes at a program like this?” Nembhard said. “Obviously, (Stromer) has to get used to it, get used to everything, but he’s doing a great job so far.

“I think he’s excited to be on the floor a little bit more and it’s just a great opportunity for him to show everybody in the country what he can do.”

Watson got the starting nod in the first four games in 2019-20 while Killian Tillie was mending from an injury. Watson finished with seven points, five boards and four assists in his first game in a Zags uniform. He remained a key member of the rotation after Tillie’s return, but repeated shoulder subluxations ended his freshman year after 15 games.

Kispert’s situation in 2017-18 was roughly the opposite of Watson’s, though both had strong frames to handle lining up against older, physical opponents. Kispert started the first seven games – he produced 10 points, four rebounds and two assists in an opening-game rout over Texas Southern – before he was slowed by a sprained ankle.

Redshirt freshman Zach Norvell Jr., now a GU assistant coach, stepped in and started the remainder of the season. Kispert averaged 6.7 points in just under 20 minutes per game.

Suggs and Holmgren were obvious candidates to start immediately as highly ranked national recruits who moved on to the NBA after one season. Zach Collins was a one-and-done and a major factor in the Zags reaching the 2017 national championship game, but he came off the bench behind Przemek Karnowski and Johnathan Williams.

Stepp and Harris were fixtures in the starting unit. Stepp started all 33 games and averaged 10.3 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.5 assists. In a season-opening win over Eastern Washington, Stepp filled the stat sheet with eight points, seven turnovers, six assists, five rebounds and five steals. Harris put up 18 points and seven rebounds against Mississippi Valley State in his GU debut – close to his eventual averages of 14.9 points and 7.1 boards.

Morrison’s lone start as a freshman was against St. Joseph’s at Madison Square Garden. The first time he touched the ball, he drove the length of the court and scored. He finished with 10 points and five rebounds. He came off the bench for the remainder of the 2004 season, but still averaged 11.4 points and nearly 21 minutes.

At least 10 other true freshmen have made multiple starts in their first season, but not in the opener. Kevin Pangos moved into the starting lineup in the second game of the 2011-12 season and essentially never left. He matched the school record with nine 3-pointers while scoring 33 points against Washington State in his first start. Gary Bell Jr. joined Pangos in the starting five by the seventh game.

Matt Bouldin (20), Steven Gray (19) and Robert Sacre (10) made double-digit starts while Mathis Monninghoff, Mathis Keita, Drew Timme, Pierre Marie Altidor-Cespedes and Jeremy Pargo started at least two games during their rookie seasons. The list of seven, including Morrison, with one start is impressive: Cory Violette, Ronny Turiaf, David Pendergraft, Austin Daye, Karnowski and Domantas Sabonis.

The Zags haven’t shied away from using true freshmen in key roles, but it’s not an easy task to crack the starting lineup at a program that’s been on the national stage for the past 25 years.

Suggs torched Kansas for 24 points and eight assists in his debut. Karnowski had 22 points and Daye finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Turiaf tallied 17 points vs. Hofstra.

Sam Dower, who didn’t start any games as a freshman in 2010-11, scored 19 points against Southern in the opener. Holmgren opened with 14 points, 13 boards and seven blocks against Utah Tech.