WCC Basketball: Gonzaga routs Saint Mary’s in top 25 showdown

In the first match-up of the season between the two WCC basketball teams, Gonzaga came out on top with a dominant 23-point victory.

The Gonzaga Bulldogs blew out the Saint Mary’s Gaels, 79-56, in dominant fashion on Saturday night in Spokane, Washington. The Bulldogs dominated the game throughout and looked every bit of the top five team that they currently are.

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Saint Mary’s was able to stay close for a lot of the first half and actually took a 27-23 lead 10 minutes into the game. Calvin Hermanson shot well in the first 20 minutes, and senior forward Dane Pineau gave them a nice spark off the bench, finishing the game with 10 points.

Unfortunately for the Gaels, their stud junior big man, Jock Landale, got into early foul trouble and they eventually cooled off without their primary offensive weapon. Gonzaga caught fire late and took a 43-34 lead at halftime behind hot shooting from Jordan Mathews.

The second half started off with Saint Mary’s looking like the aggressor. Landale scored six quick points and led what ended up being a 9-3 Gaels run to cut the Bulldogs’ lead to six. They eventually ran out of gas, however, as Landale continued to struggle with foul trouble (the junior finished with 10 points and six rebounds in just 19 minutes). Their offensive also fell apart down the stretch.

Gonzaga was able to capitalize on Saint Mary’s late offensive drought, extending their lead to 15 points with less than five minutes left. They went on to blow the Gaels out in dominating fashion.

The Zags received great contributions from Mathews (16 points and four threes) and Johnathan Williams (14 points and five blocks), but their real star on the night was Washington transfer Nigel Williams-Goss.

The junior guard finished with 19 points and six assists on a very efficient 8-of-14 from the field. He led a balanced Bulldog attack that saw them shoot 64.7 percent from the field and 53.8 percent from three.

Gonzaga continues to boast one of the more efficient offenses in the nation. They are sixth in the country in effective field goal percentage and 12th in three-point percentage, according to KenPom.

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Despite the Bulldogs’ hot shooting, this game really seemed to come down to the stark athletic contrast between the two teams. Landale may be one of the best big men in the nation right now, but he was clearly bothered by some of Gonzaga’s more active big men, as was the rest of the Saint Mary’s roster.

Williams did a great job protecting the paint, finishing with his aforementioned five blocks, and freshman big man Zach Collins wreaked havoc down low as well. Collins chipped in a clutch 10 points for the Bulldogs and currently leads the team in blocked shots.

The Zags really don’t have any weaknesses right now. They are incredibly balanced with five players averaging double figures (not to mention another two putting up right around nine points per game), and they are top seven in the country in both offensive and defensive efficiency.

The only real issue Gonzaga looked to have earlier in the season was their lack of a go-to offensive option, but Williams-Goss looks to have assumed that role. He leads the team in both scoring and assists, and displayed once again against the Gaels how dangerous he can be down the stretch.

While Saint Mary’s is far from hitting panic mode after losing just their second game of the season (not to mention this loss coming against a top five team), they need to find a consistent offensive option outside of Landale. The junior big man played less than half the game Saturday night before eventually fouling out. Their offensive stagnation with him on the bench will continue to be a problem if someone does not step up.

Coming off a sophomore campaign that saw him average 14 points per contest, Saint Mary’s guard Emmett Naar has dropped to 10 point per game this campaign, his junior year. Naar also does a lot as a playmaker — he averages 5.7 assists per game — but look for him to be much more aggressive looking for his shot as the Gaels continue on through WCC play.

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These two will match up again on February 11th at Saint Mary’s. Look for the Gaels to come out fired up in what might be the only real regular season test either team has left.