‘We’ve got to respond.’ Gonzaga moving on from Oregon State loss, will host Santa Clara on short turnaround

The impromptu party on Oregon State’s home court hadn’t died down by the time Gonzaga coach Mark Few started a postgame interview one level below in a basement hallway next to the visiting locker room at Gill Coliseum.
Oregon State’s 97-89 overtime upset of 16th-ranked Gonzaga might stay with the Beavers for a while – such moments have been sparse the past three seasons under coach Wayne Tinkle – but Few acknowledged his team won’t have the same luxury, particularly in the middle of an unforgiving conference schedule that regularly has the Zags playing games just 48 hours apart.
“Every loss is hard,” Few said. “It’s no fun, but we’ve got to respond.”
Gonzaga’s postgame interviews in Corvallis ended just after 10:50 p.m. A 50-minute bus ride to Salem, where Gonzaga’s charter jet was stationed, likely put the team in the air by 12:30 a.m.
Best-case scenario, the Zags were back on the ground in Spokane by 1:30 a.m. and in bed approximately an hour later.
The Zags were already working with a tight schedule – a later-than-usual tipoff against Oregon State on Thursday, followed by a 6 p.m. start against Santa Clara (12-7, 4-2) on Saturday in Spokane – but the window was even smaller by the time an overtime period finished in Corvallis, sending Gonzaga (14-5, 5-1) back home with lots to address, and little time to make the necessary fixes, before the next game at McCarthey Athletic Center.
“We have a really short turnaround with these ridiculous 8 p.m. games that we seem to play and then have it go back to back,” Few said. “We have to just put it away and all losses are tough in our program.”
Perhaps former All-American Domantas Sabonis can lend some wisdom or inspiration to Few’s players at some point during a return to campus. Sabonis, still Gonzaga’s all-time leader in career field-goal percentage at .632, is taking advantage of a two-day break in the Sacramento Kings’ NBA schedule to have his jersey honored at the Kennel on Saturday.
The Bulldogs are unintentionally flipping the tables on Santa Clara one year after the Broncos stunned Gonzaga 77-76 at the Leavey Center with Hall of Fame point guard Steve Nash in attendance, occupying a baseline seat, for his jersey retirement ceremony.
Santa Clara returns four of five starters and seven rotation players from the team that tripped up Gonzaga last season, giving the Broncos their first victory over the Bulldogs since 2011. Herb Sendek’s team, not unlike Few’s, should be motivated two days after losing 57-54 at Loyola Marymount, and the Broncos will be seeking their first win at the Kennel since 2007.
GU’s won 17 consecutive home games in the series with Santa Clara. The Zags have won the past 10 meetings in decisive fashion, by an average margin of 27.3 points.
“To be completely transparent, we have also played them not very tough,” Sendek said earlier this week while talking with ESPN broadcasters Sean Farnham and Dave Flemming on the new WCC Points in the Paint Podcast. “I could certainly (see) really many opportunities playing them where probably the best thing I could’ve done is get thrown out at the first media timeout. It probably would’ve saved me a lot of suffering. What an incredible program … I know they’re really, really good.”
Gonzaga and Santa Clara both avoided significant roster turnover this offseason, as two of the top-15 teams nationally in returning minutes. The Bulldogs ranked fifth while returning 81.4% of minutes from last season and the Broncos were 12th at 76.1%.
On the offensive end, the Broncos are not surprisingly led by Adama Bal, an All-WCC first-team selection who averages 13.7 points. Bal tested NBA draft waters and participated in the scouting combine before returning to Santa Clara for his senior season.
Guard Carlos Stewart is back at Santa Clara after spending one season at LSU. Stewart, one of four players in double figures for Sendek, averages 12.2 points. The Baton Rouge, Louisiana, native paces the Broncos with 2.9 assists. Junior college transfer Elijah Mahi, a native of Toronto, is Santa Clara’s only rotation player who’ll make his debut against Gonzaga on Saturday. Mahi averages 12.6 points and 4.2 rebounds.
Gonzaga is pinpointing defense as its primary focus entering Saturday’s matchup. The Bulldogs have been inconsistent on that end since WCC play started, holding Portland, LMU and Washington State below their season scoring averages, but allowing 86.3 points in regulation games against Pepperdine and San Diego, and Thursday’s overtime contest against OSU.
“We’ve got to have a good approach (Saturday),” Gonzaga point guard Ryan Nembhard said. “Obviously, we’ll practice, it’ll probably be a little lighter of a day but we’ve got to figure things out defensively. We scored enough (Thursday) to win the game, but defensively we weren’t good enough. So, definitely that’ll be a focus for the next day or two.”