‘Nobody like him.’ Gonzaga’s Ryan Nembhard breaks own school single-season record with 244th assist in second half against Pacific

STOCKTON, Calif. – Noah and Dennis Callahan, two Gonzaga fans from nearby Walnut Creek, California, showed up to their courtside seats at the Alex Spanos Center with seven white cards, each marked with a blue Sharpie.

In order, they read: 238, 239, 240, 241, 242, 243 and 244.

Any Gonzaga fan understood what the paper cards represented on a night that point guard Ryan Nembhard needed six more assists to break the program’s single-season record.

At his current rate of 9.9 assists per game, it likely wasn’t going to take the senior much longer to reach the threshold. Gonzaga’s point guard broke the record midway through the second half of a 78-61 victory, setting up guard Khalif Battle on an alley-oop lob in transition to open a 28-point lead.

From the opposite end of the court, the Callahans flashed their “244” card to commemorate the record-breaking assist. GU’s bench rose to its feet, waiting until the point guard made his way back to the locker room to shower him with applause and high-fives.

“That’s a good way to get the record, for sure,” Nembhard said of the lob to Battle. “It’s just nice to hoop out there with my guys and get wins. That’s the most enjoyable part. Obviously, it’s an honor and a blessing to have this record, but it’s just fun being out here and getting wins.”

Nembhard is plenty familiar with the program’s previous record-holder.

The point guard took over the top spot last season when he dished out 243 assists, overtaking Josh Perkins during Gonzaga’s win over Kansas in the NCAA Tournament’s Round of 32. Perkins recorded 234 assists during the 2018-19 season.

To put Nembhard’s newest accomplishment into context, he needed 34 games last season to do something that required just 25 games one year later. The numbers add up, with Nembhard averaging 9.9 assists this year after posting 6.9 during his first season at GU after transferring from Creighton.

“It is kind of crazy, I haven’t really put too much thought into it,” Nembhard said. “Just kind of went out there hooping and trying to win games for the squad, but that’s definitely a super special accomplishment.”

Three of the top-10 assist seasons in school history belong to the Nembhard family, with older brother Andrew registering 184 during his final season with the Zags in 2021-22. Andrew’s total is 10th in school history, tied with John Stockton and Dan Dickau, who was on the KHQ television broadcast Saturday night.

“It’s really impressive,” Gonzaga coach Mark Few said of Ryan’s record. “He’s got this amazing ability to not only see those openings – that’s the hardest thing to teach and coach. It’s really hard to do. You either have it or you don’t.

“Then also to have the tools to deliver it on time and he delivers it in the smallest of windows. So it’s really impressive.”

Nembhard owns the two top spots in GU’s record book and will have an opportunity to break the West Coast Conference record, set by Saint Mary’s guard Emmett Naar with 284 assists during the 2018-29 season.

Nembhard’s not only on track to set that record before the end of the regular season, but he could also join an exclusive club of players that has recorded 300 assists in a season. Only 20 players have reached that plateau, with the most recent being Saint Louis’ Yuri Collins, who had 324 assists during the 2022-23 season.

The Ontario native entered Saturday’s game leading the nation in assists per game (9.9) and total assists (238). He was the first player in the country to hit 100 and 200 assists this season and his assist-to-turnover ratio (4.49) was second in the country coming into the day.

Nembhard’s eight assists on Saturday signified his lowest total in eight games, since he posted five during a Jan. 11 win against Washington State. He rounded out his stat line with seven points, four rebounds and one steal in 35 minutes.

Pacific coach Dave Smart, a friend of the Nembhard family who coached Andrew on Canada’s U-18 team at the 2018 FIBA Americas Championship, had high praise for GU’s point guard after the first and only regular-season meeting between the Zags and Tigers.

“He just throws so many passes where I don’t even think half the time the guy who’s receiving passes knows he’s going to pass it, but they know if they run hard it’s going to be there,” Smart said. “Because he just throws it to areas that other people just don’t do. We watched hours and hours of tape and there’s nobody like him. There’s just no one like him.”

Nembhard has a ringing endorsement from Pacific’s coach for the various national awards he’s up for this season.

“I do think they’re a different team without him,” Smart said. “We can say Wooden Award winner all we want about a million people.

“I do not think there’s a player in the country on a team that’s capable of winning the national championship who’s more important to be on the floor on the team than he is.”