Analysis: No Graham Ike still means plenty of problems for North Florida in 109-58 loss to No. 11 Gonzaga
North Florida probably learned a few things about No. 11 Gonzaga while preparing for and then playing in Sunday’s game at McCarthey Athletic Center.
The Zags are at their best when All-American candidate Graham Ike is on the floor. They’re fully capable of handling their business when he isn’t.
No Ike still meant a world of problems for the ASUN Ospreys, who fell into an early hole, didn’t score for nearly seven minutes midway through the second half and allowed Gonzaga to cover a 47½-point pregame spread on its home floor.
With Ike sidelined due to left ankle soreness, Braden Huff and a handful of other players easily carried the Zags to their ninth win of the season, surging to a 109-58 victory in their first game at the Kennel since Nov. 17.
It signified the 750th career victory for Gonzaga’s Mark Few, who reached the milestone in just 904 games. Kentucky’s Adolph Rupp is the only coach to reach 750 wins faster, doing it in 902 games.
“It was really, really short turnaround, especially with all the travel getting home so late the other night (after playing Kentucky),” Few said. “But yeah, they did a great job staying focused and kind of playing the right way, so I was proud of them for doing that.”
Facing Gonzaga usually means dealing with two of the nation’s most efficient low-post scorers. Facing Gonzaga without Ike means you still have to deal with a projected All-West Coast Conference First Team selection in the frontcourt who might be in the mix for All-America recognition if he didn’t share minutes and post touches with someone of Ike’s caliber.
Huff was a force for Gonzaga, scoring a game-high 24 points in 26 minutes. The junior forward reached double figures for the 10th time in as many games, making 12 of 17 shots from the field and pulling down seven rebounds.
“He was very solid, actually missed a couple shots, which he’s used to making all his shots,” Few said. “Those short hooks he usually makes. No, he was solid.”
There weren’t too many Gonzaga players you couldn’t say that about Sunday.
Huff was one of five players to reach double figures for a Gonzaga team that hit the century mark for a third time this season. Of the 13 players who got on the court, 12 managed to find the score sheet before the final buzzer sounded.
Tyon Grant-Foster scored 19 points, including 14 in the second half, and Davis Fogle came off the bench to supply 15 points in 18 minutes, helping the Zags rack up a 52-22 edge in bench points.
Freshman point guard Mario Saint-Supery scored 13 points on perfect shooting from the 3-point line (4 of 4) and also registered seven assists, three rebounds and two steals. Steele Venters also knocked down four 3-pointers to finish with 12 points.
Gonzaga finished 10 of 18 from the 3-point line as a team and had a 58-14 advantage in paint points.
The Zags returned to the court 48 hours after wrapping up an impressive 94-59 nonconference win over No. 18 Kentucky at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena.
Gonzaga got 3-pointers from Venters and Saint-Supery inside the first two minutes and went on a 21-3/19-0 scoring spree later in the half, when the Zags held the Ospreys scoreless for 6 minutes, 40 seconds.
“Tough travel day on Sunday then had a little walkthrough on Sunday,” Venters said. “I think the biggest thing for us tonight was have great energy and execute the game plan and I think we did that.”
North Florida finished shooting 20 of 60 from the field and 10 of 38 from the 3-point line.
The Zags (9-1) will likely climb into the top 10 of Monday’s AP Top 25 poll before traveling to Seattle for Saturday’s game against UCLA (7-2) at Climate Pledge Arena (8:30 p.m. ESPN). The Bruins have dealt with numerous injuries during nonconference play, but picked up two Big Ten wins against Pacific Northwest teams, beating Washington 82-80 in Seattle and Oregon 74-63 at Pauley Pavilion.