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Gonzaga looking to resolve offensive issues in final nonleague test before holiday break

theo lawson, the spokesman-review, spokane, wash.
·4 min read

Dec. 19—Gonzaga can take solace in at least two facts pertaining to its final nonconference matchup before an eight-day holiday vacation.

Wednesday's game won't require a trip to Seattle, and the team on the opposing bench won't have "Huskies" embroidered anywhere on its jersey or shorts.

Recent losses to Washington and UConn caused the Bulldogs to tumble from No. 7 to No. 15 in the national rankings in the span of two weeks and could damage their chances of grabbing a high NCAA Tournament seed three months from now, particularly because Gonzaga's remaining schedule doesn't offer many opportunities to grab highly coveted "Quad 1" wins.

Fortunately, the Bulldogs know as well as anyone that brackets aren't formed in December and teams that improve through January and February usually fare better in March than the ones that peak before Christmas.

"We'll be fine, nobody's worried in the locker room, nobody's stressing," sophomore forward Ben Gregg said. "Hopefully, nobody's given up on us. We're sure as heck not giving up on ourselves. Still a long ways to go in the season and we're going to be fine."

Gonzaga (8-3) wouldn't make up much ground in the AP poll and probably wouldn't move up a seed line by beating Jackson State (4-7), but Wednesday's game at McCarthey Athletic Center provides one final chance for the Bulldogs to iron out kinks and restore confidence before a home game Dec. 29 against last season's national runner-up, San Diego State.

Sandwiched between games against USC, UW, UConn and SDSU, the Zags lined up three home games against lower-tier opponents from the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC). Gonzaga cruised to victories over Arkansas-Pine Bluff (111-70) and Mississippi Valley State (78-40), which were picked to finish 10th and 12th, respectively, in the 12-team conference, but Wednesday's SWAC opponent is expected to offer more resistance than the past two.

Jackson State was picked to finish fourth in the preseason SWAC poll, owns a win over Missouri of the SEC and checks in at No. 255, according to Ken Pomeroy's ratings. That's a steep drop-off from a few of Gonzaga's higher-caliber nonconference opponents — the Bulldogs have faced KenPom's No. 2 (Purdue) and No. 3 (UConn) teams — but Jackson State is still held in much higher regard than the Bulldogs' past two SWAC visitors, which rank No. 349 (UAPB) and No. 362 (MVSU).

"They're nothing to overlook," Gregg said. "We watched a little bit of film on them and went over their scout (Monday) for the first time and they just kept telling us how hard they play. They're going to play aggressive and they're going to trap stuff.

"If we play lackadaisical or nonfundamental, make sloppy passes, they're going to hurt us. So it's just going to be about playing fundamental, making the right plays, playing on two feet, not making pointless turnovers. Just stuff like that and we should be good."

As 26 1/2 -point favorites, the Bulldogs may not be totally satisfied with a win on Wednesday night if they're not able to resolve a few key issues in the process.

At the forefront is a 3-point-shooting slump that's hindered Gonzaga in each of its past three games.

The Bulldogs made 27% from the 3-point line against UW then followed that up by shooting 20% against MVSU and 16% against UConn. It's the first time Gonzaga has shot under 30% from 3 in three consecutive games since the 2015-16 season.

As a group, the Bulldogs are shooting 32% from 3-point range. History says those numbers will change over the next two months — GU's Mark Few has never coached a group that finished the season shooting less than 35%. But Gonzaga's backcourt starters Ryan Nembhard, Nolan Hickman and Dusty Stromer have combined to make just 5 of 28 (17%) over the past three games.

Jackson State has been one of the nation's least-effective teams when it comes to defending the 3-point line, allowing opponents to make 37% of their attempts.

Senior guard Ken Evans Jr. leads the Tigers in scoring at 17.4 points per game, but he's averaged 9.6 points over the team's past three games and hasn't made a 3-pointer in December. Forward Jordan O'Neal averages 11.9 and 5.1 rebounds for Jackson State.

The Tigers haven't played at home. They have traveled for road/neutral-site games in Tennessee, California, Oklahoma, Missouri, the District of Columbia, Arkansas, Texas, Nevada, North Carolina and Washington.