A Grip on Sports: The lost weekend could end up being just a speed bump for Gonzaga or a sinkhole – it’s up to the Zags to decide

A GRIP ON SPORTS • What is it? Just a little lull, a downturn the Gonzaga Bulldogs are going through in what was expected to be a season of historic success? Or, is Richard Fox right when he said “the wheels are coming off” as Graham Ike and the Zags melted down during a game-deciding second-half stretch at home against Santa Clara last night?

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• Both, maybe?

Fox, the KHQ commentator and S-R podcast analyst, wasn’t talking about the Zags in a global sense. He was focused on Ike’s meltdown – the 6-foot-9 center picked up his third foul with 4-minutes, 48-seconds left, compounded it with a technical as he and his 21 points were exiled to the bench for the rest of the way – as they fell behind by 13 to a Santa Clara squad that lost 57-54 at Loyola Marymount Thursday night.

But the words might just be appropriate for what’s happening to Mark Few’s 14-6 Bulldogs.

A 97-89 overtime loss at Oregon State on Thursday night. A game marred by the 16th-ranked – for another day anyway – Bulldogs’ inability to get key stops.

The 103-99 defeat Saturday evening in the Kennel, the first time Gonzaga has yielded triple digits in McCarthey. Not just this season. Ever. With Domantas Sabonis in attendance as his jersey was raised to the rafters.

Lull? Or meltdown?

Ryan Nembhard yelling at Ike after his technical – it was impossible to hear what the senior point guard was saying as we watched on KHQ but the tone was pretty easy to discern – would seem to tip the scale toward the wheels rolling alone down the street as the bus came to a sudden halt.

Not to us, though.

Nembhard, the smallest man in the Zags’ rotation, did what a point guard is supposed to do. Be a big-time leader. Stand tall and demand his teammates be accountable. Set a larger-than-life tone.

The line between his forceful words to the almost-successful Gonzaga rally that followed is a short one. Direct. And heartening, even if it came up short. Emotion and passion and fury can only take a team so far, though. It has to be accompanied by better play.

In Gonzaga’s case, on the defensive end. As it is so often. In 2017, when the Zags went to the NCAA championship game, they were the nation’s top-ranked defensive group according to Ken Pomeroy’s ratings. It was the start of a three-year stretch in which they were in the top 20. This season? They are 60th.

That’s not one person’s fault. It’s a team thing. Defense always is. The Zags’ late burst, in which they forced turnover after turnover and cut the 13-point deficit to three at a couple points? A team effort. But a couple of defensive breakdowns in the final 2:18? Both were on Nolan Hickman – an indispensable offensive force last night with a team-high 24 points, including three transition 3-pointers during the late rally.

But Hickman also got caught ball watching the first time Gonzaga cut the lead to three and Adama Bal snuck behind him for a backdoor layup to ease the pressure. Less than 30 seconds later the Zags were back within three again and had Santa Clara under pressure out front. Hickman overhelped as the Broncos escaped one last trap and Jake Ensminger found Tyeree Bryan alone in the right corner with 43 ticks remaining.

Hickman’s late closeout was way short and Bryan’s seventh 3-pointer – he finished with a career-high 35 points – turned out to be the coffin nail.

Of such things, and many more like them, are losses built. More too, for sure. Ike’s occasional inability to shrug off deliberate attempts to goad him into losing his composure, a la DK Metcalf. Too many minutes for Nembhard, who had an overlooked 15 assists and one turnover in this one. Dusty Stromer’s and Michael Ajayi’s mysterious shooting woes. Add it all up and the Zags have fallen out of the top 10 in the NET rankings (18) and KenPom’s ratings (13 overall).

Maybe worse, they are two games behind Saint Mary’s in the WCC standings already. That’s rectifiable, quickly, what with this week’s short pause before a visit to Portland on Saturday, followed by a Spokane visit from Oregon State Jan. 28 and then the key road game of the WCC season, at the Gaels on Feb. 1.

But only rectifiable if the Bulldogs shore up their defensive lapses. Utilize every offensive weapon – Khalif Battle was shut out Saturday, inexplicably taking just four shots in only 19 minutes on the court. And get back to how the Zags have played a majority of the past two decades. Five guys not trying to do too much, being content as part of a group working together for the greater good, sharing the ball and glory, and filling their role on the defensive end.

A simple formula. Hard to achieve. And lost this past week.

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WSU: Yes, Saint Mary’s is undefeated (6-0) and holds a two-game loss-column lead in the men’s WCC standings over USF (6-2), Gonzaga, Santa Clara and, yep, Washington State (all 5-2). The Cougars got there with an impressive late-game performance, allowing them to run away from visiting Portland 92-70. Greg Woods has the coverage, which focuses on one word: growth. … Geoff Crimmins has a photo gallery for the S-R. … The two women’s teams tied atop the WCC standings? That would be Gonzaga and, yep, Washington State, both 7-2. The Cougars got there with a 74-47 rout of host Santa Clara. … Elsewhere in the (current, old and future) Pac-12 and the nation, the CFP title game is Monday night and, after reading John Canzano’s column on Chip Kelly, we are sure Ohio State will score a zillion points. Guess that means we are also sure the Buckeyes will defeat Notre Dame. … The saga of Xavier Lewis, Wisconsin and Miami is getting ugly. Quickly. The Badgers and the Big Ten issued statements yesterday, accusing Miami of tampering, admitting Wisconsin broke NCAA rules by not entering Lewis’ name in the portal and having him sign an NIL agreement that is impermissible and unenforceable until the House settlement is approved – if it is. How weird. … Another Washington defender followed Steve Belichick to North Carolina. … Could Marshall Faulk be the next former NFL star to join Colorado’s staff? … Rob Ryan on the USC football staff? That doesn’t sound like the makings of a future late-season meltdown at all. … Arizona received more good news concerning its roster. … In basketball news, Washington retired Kelsey Plum’s jersey last night, and the women picked up a win over Purdue. Probably related. … The 13th-ranked Oregon men couldn’t shoot in the second half and fell to No. 17 Purdue. It was the Ducks’ third home Big Ten loss. … Utah and BYU met for the first time as Big 12 rivals, with the Utes winning an overtime battle in Salt Lake City. … San Diego State played sluggishly and UNLV took advantage for a 76-68 road upset win. … Colorado State won its border rivalry game with Wyoming 79-63.  

Gonzaga: Theo Lawson led the way with the S-R’s coverage, writing the game story and helping to put together this recap with highlights along with the folks in the office. … Jim Meehan added a buzzer-beater notebook and coverage of Sabonis’ jersey-retirement ceremony. … Tyler Tjomsland has his usual emotive photo gallery. … There are also stories from the Bay Area. … The Bulldog women stayed tied atop the standings, riding an explosive fourth-quarter to a 69-58 win over Loyola Marymount. Greg Lee has the coverage of the road victory. … Elsewhere in the WCC, Portland’s women dominated Oregon State in Corvallis. … The San Francisco men did the same to the visiting Beavers.

EWU and Idaho: The Vandal men hosted their first meeting of the season with the Eagles and, as Peter Harriman tells us, came away with an 83-76 victory. … Peter also covered the UI women’s 67-57 win over the visiting Eagles. … Elsewhere in the Big Sky, Idaho State’s men are having a great season, highlighted Saturday with an 86-61 win over visiting Montana. … It was a good weekend for Northern Colorado, who finished it up with a 68-64 win over Sacramento State. … Weber State lost at home to Montana State 80-71. … On the women’s side, Montana is 2-0 since coach Brian Holsinger stepped away on leave. The Griz topped visiting Idaho State 81-60. … Montana State remains undefeated after defeating Weber State 75-51.

Whitworth: The Pirates got back on the right track with an 82-74 road win against Pacific University.

Preps: Saturday was a big day for the smaller schools in hoops. There is, as always, a roundup to pass along.

Chiefs: Dave Nichols was busy Saturday night at the Arena, watching as Jordan Gustafson’s hat trick led the visiting Lethbridge Hurricanes to a 4-2 win. By the way, when was the last time there was a Hurricane in Lethbridge, Alberta? We’re guessing never.

Kraken: Seattle defeated the Kings last night and hope the win will begin a long climb back up the Pacific Division standings.

Seahawks: Want a laugh? And to relive a fun memory? Then you need to read Dave Boling’s column this morning on the Hawks’ most-iconic postseason play – happy version – from their second consecutive Super Bowl run in 2015. … There were two interesting playoff games Saturday. The Chiefs’ 23-14 win over visiting Houston was marked by a couple awful officiating calls. The Commanders will visit either the Rams or Philadelphia next week. Why? Because the upstarts from D.C. went into Detroit and took full advantage of the Lions’ largesse. … Today’s other contest pits Buffalo hosting the Ravens in what is expected to be a weather-impacted game.

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• It is cold here. In the high teens for a while. But the weather is nothing like it will be in Buffalo for tonight’s game. There is a lake effects snow warning. That’s bad. Really bad. A snow-globe game is in the offing. Until later …