Zags 360: Back on the court, Scheduling issues, and Kentucky on the horizon
Gonzaga Bulldogs – Next
The Zags have two games on tap against some of the West Coast Conference’s better teams.
1/13 vs. Brigham Young Cougars (14-3 overall, 2-0 in WCC)
Gonzaga has two conference games scheduled for this week. On Thursday, Brigham Young visits the McCarthy Center. No one in BYU’s main rotation is over 6-foot-8, so the Zags have a huge advantage in the paint.
This is no easy game for Gonzaga. Even with BYU’s lack of height, the Cougars are a dangerous team. Nembhard and Rasir Bolton will have their hands full defending the perimeter against All-Conference guard Alex Barcello, who is shooting nearly 47 percent from behind the arc. Brigham Young ranks in the mid-30s on both polls and at one point were as high as 12th.
BYU Leaders
Points – Alex Barcello 16.3
Rebounds – Fousseyni Traore 7.3
Assists – Te’Jon Lucas 4.3
Why did Yoeli Childs trust BYU's Alex Barcello to hit two huge shots at the end of the Utah State game?? 4:30am. pic.twitter.com/O9CNEx9DOs
— David James (@DavidDJJames) December 15, 2019
1/15 at Santa Clara Broncos (10-5, 0-0)
Santa Clara’s layoff (21 days) was even longer than the Gonzaga Bulldogs. At least the Broncos get one game in before playing the Best in the West. All-WCC guard Jalen Williams leads the conference in scoring with 18.8 points per game.
Santa Clara already has wins over Stanford, Cal, Nevada, and TCU. The Broncos are a good team who will be playing games in March past the WCC tournament. Their in-conference performance will determine if that’s in the NCAA Tournament or NIT.
SC Leaders
Points – Jalen Williams 18.8
Rebounds – Keshawn Justice 8.0
Assists – Josip Vrankic 4.1
Related Story: Gonzaga Bulldogs 2021 Year in Review
Over his past two games against Hawaii and Louisiana Tech 6-foot-6 and 20-year-old Santa Clara junior Jalen Williams has averaged 29 points on 65.6% FG% (21/32) and 81.3% FT% (13/16) to go with 4.5 assists, 4 boards + 1.5 steals. His 29.4 PER is 7th among NCAA juniors this season pic.twitter.com/8sWTS0J7CN
— DraftExpressContent (@DXContent) December 6, 2021
Until next time, stay safe. Our Gonzaga Bulldogs expert Teresa Powe will be back next week with the Zags 360.