Gonzaga Bullies Oklahoma on the Boards, Cruises to 83-68 Home Victory
Lauded for possessing perhaps the best frontcourt in the country, the complete team size of Gonzaga men’s basketball (2-0) stood out on national TV Saturday night in an 83-68 victory over Oklahoma.
Controlling the offensive glass and converting on chances in close proximity to the basket were key for the Zags as they opened it up at Spokane Arena with a rousing win against another talented Power 4 program in the Sooners.
At the top of the scouting report for each opponent the Bulldogs face this season will be the team’s starting bigs, Graham Ike and Braden Huff. The two have undeniable chemistry and are tough to contain once they get to their spots on the block. Sooners 6-10 forward Mohamed Wague was tasked with helping defend Gonzaga’s star duo, but committed fouls on back-to-back plays three minutes in, putting OU behind the eight ball as it related to advantageous matchups defensively.
It set the tone for nearly both Zags forwards to log double-doubles in the win. Ike put up 19 points and 11 rebounds with four assists on 9-of-17 shooting, while Huff scored 13 with nine boards, shooting 6-for-17 from the floor. Ike did wind up fouling out with about five minutes to go, but the Zags had built themselves a sizable cushion by that time.
58 of the 83 points GU scored were in the paint, while holding the Sooners to just 20 paint points on the other end. The rebounding battle was also won by Gonzaga 46-39, with the stark difference being the Bulldogs getting 10 more offensive boards. It was a clinic on how to put pressure on the other team, both offensively and defensively, a method the Zags want to live by.
“I feel like that’s part of our identity is winning the O-board game and the defensive rebounds,” Jalen Warley said.
Gonzaga didn’t separate from Oklahoma until about 10 minutes to go in the first half, when the group of Tyon Grant-Foster (14 points), Mario Saint-Supéry (8 points), and Warley (13 points) all were on the floor off the bench. The trio spearheaded a 38-8 advantage in non-starter scoring between the teams, as the Bulldogs’ depth shone forth again as a difference maker.
Specifically, the connection and chemistry between Grant-Foster and Saint-Supéry continues to grow, as the two teamed up for an alley-oop that Grant-Foster threw down on a backdoor cut out of a pick-and-roll. It was a play that the two talked about in practice and just before the sequence, as they grow more comfortable with each other’s playstyles.
“We've been practicing,” Grant-Foster laughed. “And I told him, if you throw it up there, I'm gonna go get it… So I told him, literally, the play before, if we do the same play, throw it up…and he literally just threw it up.”
Saint-Supery added, “I told him in the first practice…I know you can dunk, but I need to adapt to you. I need to get used to you. Then I think we’re starting to get that connection.”
Perhaps it was the game script of the Zags being up big – they were up 19 at halftime – but the true freshman point guard doubled Braeden Smith’s 13 minutes in this game. Saint-Supéry dished out six assists while hauling in four rebounds as he got extensive run in the win, something to surely monitor moving forward.
Warley and Grant-Foster also contributed to the rebounding disparity, grabbing eight and seven boards, respectively. Oddly enough, they also talked about being menaces on the glass as well, but even with their impressive performances, the two didn’t hit their goal.
“Yesterday, we said we needed 16 rebounds together…we was one short,” Grant-Foster said. “I really feel like we just spoke it into existence…”
Grant-Foster continues to show why his eligibility to play this season is so imperative to GU’s success, as he demonstrates his experience with perfectly timed cuts and hustle plays. He also had a putback slam on a missed Huff three while also earning an and-one bucket after sneaking baseline and receiving a pass from Adam Miller.
Efficiency persists from Warley’s game, who shot 6-for-9 from the field as he always seems to take good shots, and he tallied three assists as well. The standout play of the two final-year players allows for the Bulldogs to play smaller, as they can each guard multiple positions and pose better threats offensively.
No. 21 Gonzaga will have its first game against another ranked opponent on Tuesday, November 11, as the No. 23 Creighton Bluejays will come to town for a matchup at the McCarthey Athletic Center at 7PM PT.
