‘Starting at ground zero’: Gonzaga visits Portland after hitting reset button defensively

PORTLAND – The practice plan for the week was obvious since Gonzaga gave up a McCarthey Athletic Center record 103 points in a loss to Santa Clara last Saturday.

Especially since that came on the heels of a disheartening 97-89 overtime loss to Oregon State.

“Some defensive work, probably some intensity work,” GU head coach Mark Few said, noting Santa Clara has quality personnel and shot the lights out. “We’re starting at ground zero again, see if we can build them back up. It’s a shame we had them playing really, really good basketball there early and we just didn’t finish off a couple games.

“I mean, we were playing with anybody in the country.”

Gonzaga’s first test since suffering two consecutive West Coast Conference losses for the first time since 2014 arrives Saturday at 5 p.m. against Portland at the Chiles Center.

In 2014, Gonzaga rebounded to win six consecutive games, claim WCC regular-season and tournament titles and post a first-round NCAA Tournament victory over Oklahoma State before its season came to an end against Arizona.

GU players, speaking roughly 30 minutes following the Santa Clara loss, anticipated a tough week of practices, obviously centering on the defensive side of the ball.

“Coach Few made a good point, just starting at ground zero,” senior guard Nolan Hickman said. “There’s some change that needs to happen for sure, go back to our foundation drills, figure out the simple things of defense, the coverages, all around.”

“They’re going to be hard (practices), and it doesn’t only start with the coaching staff,” sophomore forward Braden Huff added. “It starts with us. We have to push ourselves in the next couple practices and hold each other and ourselves accountable.”

And then take it to the floor against a Portland team that enters with some momentum following a 92-82 home win Thursday over San Diego that moved the Pilots (7-14, 2-6) out of a last-place tie into eighth.

Junior wing Max Mackinnon made 7 of 9 3-pointers and 18 of 22 free throws en route to 43 points, equaling the school record. Senior guard Chris Austin, who recently returned to the starting lineup, added 20 points, five days after scoring a season-high 20 against Washington State. Austin is in his seventh year after encountering leg, knee and thumb injuries in previous seasons. He spent his first three seasons at Fordham and the past four with Portland.

Freshman forward Austin Rapp contributed 17 points and eight boards. He ranks first nationally among freshmen in free-throw percentage (89.0) and 3-point percentage (35.4), second in made 3-pointers (51), 13th in blocked shots (25), 14th in rebounding (6.5) and 19th in scoring (13.9).

The Pilots have won two of their past three after opening 0-5 against five of the top six teams in the standings. One of those losses was an 81-50 blowout to the Zags at the Arena on Jan. 2.

Portland scored just seven points in the first 15-plus minutes and had 17 points at halftime. The Pilots are averaging 79.5 points over the past four games while the Zags have yielded 88.7 in their past four.

“Start playing defense, start hitting our coverages, start playing harder,” Few said. “Start being a little more gritty and tougher and basically guarding your man 1-on-1 so it doesn’t require help and rotations. Our offensive numbers have been fine these last two games.”

The Zags (14-6, 5-2 WCC) trail Saint Mary’s (17-3, 7-0) by two games. GU and Santa Clara (14-7, 6-2) are the only teams with two conference losses. San Francisco (16-6, 6-3), Washington State (15-6, 5-3) and Oregon State (15-6, 5-3) are next in the standings.

Gonzaga has won 19 straight in the series and Few is 46-2 vs. the Pilots.