‘We’ll have to be great.’ Gonzaga hosts San Francisco team seeking first Spokane win since 1989
When Gonzaga officially closes its final chapter in the West Coast Conference two months from now, it could be worth taking a trip down memory lane and ranking the various streaks Mark Few’s program kept up during the team’s time in the league.
Provided the eighth-ranked Zags keep those streaks alive, of course.
It’s been a busy week on that front for Gonzaga, which recently pocketed its 51st straight victory against Pepperdine to extend the second-longest streak in NCAA history.
There’s more at stake this Saturday, with San Francisco (13-8, 5-3) traveling to McCarthey Athletic Center seeking its first win against Gonzaga (20-1, 8-0) since 2012. The Dons’ drought in Spokane runs even longer than that.
San Francisco’s last road victory at Gonzaga came on Feb. 10, 1989. George H.W. Bush was just starting his first term as U.S. President, Dan Fitzgerald was in the middle of his second term as Gonzaga’s coach and Few was still an assistant coach at Sheldon High School in Eugene, Oregon. The Dons snuck out of the Martin Centre with a 67-64 victory, handing the Zags their 10th loss of the season.
It probably didn’t register with any USF player or coach the WCC program would come up empty-handed in its next 35 trips to the Inland Northwest. Nine different 20-win USF teams have lost at Gonzaga since 2011-12, including Todd Golden’s 24-win group that made the 2022 NCAA Tournament and a 23-win team in 2023-24 that featured NBA Draft pick Jonathan Mogbo.
It’s relative of course, but Saturday sets up not only as the last chance but also one of the best USF’s had to stun the Zags in recent memory. Gonzaga’s expected to be without junior forward Braden Huff (17.8 points per game) for the third straight game and leading scorer Graham Ike (18.1 ppg) is still day-to-day with right ankle soreness. Ike wore a boot on his right foot while watching Wednesday’s game against Pepperdine from the bench.
“We’re going to have to be great. We’ll have to be great,” Few said. “San Francisco’s just a really, really, really solid team. They’ve came in this building and really gave us everything – it took everything we had to get the win. They’ve got some returnees back, they added some nice pieces in the transfer portal. They added a nice big.”
The Dons still have at least three more games against Gonzaga and Saint Mary’s, but should have an opportunity to win 20 games for the fifth straight season and fourth time under coach Chris Gerlufsen.
As Gonzaga deals with two significant injuries in its frontcourt, USF could be getting healthier entering the first matchup of the season between the teams. Gerlufsen said he was hopeful junior wing Mookie Cook – a former Gonzaga target – would be available to play Saturday after the Oregon transfer who averages 10.1 ppg and 5.6 rpg missed the last seven WCC games with a knee injury.
Junior guard Ryan Beasley continues to shoulder more offensive responsibility for a USF team that lost its top two scorers from last year and averages a team-high 14.2 ppg. Sophomore wing Tyrone Riley IV is averaging 12.1 ppg and 4.9 rpg and Rhode Island transfer David Fuchs has added post scoring and rebounding, averaging 11.9 ppg and 4.7 rpg.
“It’s going to take a lot of energy, effort. We need to be on the scout and the game plan a lot better than we were tonight,” Gerlufsen said after Saturday’s narrow win against Washington State. “Then you’ve got to embrace the opportunity. Spokane is to me, I’ve been all over the country playing games and to me it’s top three, top five place in the country to play a college basketball game. So anytime you have a chance to play in that environment, you’ve got to embrace it, you’ve got to enjoy it and take advantage of it.
“Tons of respect for coach Few, their program, what he’s done. We’re just going to enjoy the opportunity and go up there and compete at a high level and see what happens after 40 minutes.”
The Zags are likely preparing for scenarios where Ike plays and those where he doesn’t. In the forward’s absence, sophomore center Ismaila Diagne has made consecutive starts, grabbing 18 total rebounds against Seattle U and Pepperdine, but the scoring drop-off has been huge. Diagne’s tallied just five points on 2-of-6 shooting with four turnovers in his starts.
Gonzaga’s also comfortable switching to a smaller look, with Jalen Warley playing the role of small-ball center. One of the Zags’ most important players this season, Warley’s averaged 10.0 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 2.6 steals since moving into the starting five against WSU.