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Gonzaga Basketball: Are Bulldogs as good as the 2016-17 team?

By Brandon Clearwaters

SPOKANE, WA - FEBRUARY 02: Fans for the Gonzaga Bulldogs cheer for their team against the San Diego Toreros at McCarthey Athletic Center on February 2, 2019 in Spokane, Washington. Gonzaga defeated San Diego 85-69. (Photo by William Mancebo/Getty Images)
SPOKANE, WA - FEBRUARY 02: Fans for the Gonzaga Bulldogs cheer for their team against the San Diego Toreros at McCarthey Athletic Center on February 2, 2019 in Spokane, Washington. Gonzaga defeated San Diego 85-69. (Photo by William Mancebo/Getty Images) /
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Gonzaga Basketball is on another quest for a Final Four in 2019. Question is, are they better than the one who last took the program that far?

Despite a huge 60-47 upset loss to the Saint Mary’s Gales back on March 12th in the finals of the West Coast Conference Championship the Zags still received the number one seed on the west region of the NCAA March Madness tournament. Gonzaga Basketball seemed to recover nicely, beating Fairleigh Dickinson by 38 points, the biggest margin of victory in program history in the Big Dance.

The buzz is still going around in Spokane that this Gonzaga team (30-3, 16-0 West Coast) may be the team to win the NCAA National Championship. But what is it about this Zags team that makes them similar or better than the 2017 Zags team that was the National Runners up?

That question can be answered by taking a look at just how this year’s Bulldogs compares to that 2017 team. First, let’s take a look at the dominance this year’s Zags has had. Gonzaga has been outscoring its West Coast Conference opponents by an average of twenty-eight points. The Bulldogs also averaged eighty-eight points per game this season. Gonzaga was also the first team to beat Duke at full strength this season back in the Maui Invitational.

The reason this Gonzaga team is better equipped for March Madness this year compared to the 2017 National Runners up, is because this Zags team is more dynamic and plays as a team.
They have multiple players who can step up in the captain’s role when needed. For example, Zach Norvell JR. can take over when he’s needed, as well as Rui Hachimura and Brandon Clarke. Rui and Clarke this season have scored in double digits every game this season. Not only do these two scores in double digits, but so does Josh Perkins who can average 20 points a game when he needs to in very critical games.

But what makes this team so dominant is the fact that this Zags team is able to block more shots, thanks to the all-time block leader Brandon Clarke. Clarke has already broken the GU single-season record and now ranks sixth in program history for most blocks in a career, with all 102 blocks coming this season. This year’s team is also able to hold teams to a lower percentage inside the arch and they force turnovers at critical parts of every game.

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The biggest difference that we have been able to see this season is they’re allowing too many rebounds and second chances for their opponents, but this hasn’t seemed to slow down this Gonzaga team this season. Total the Zags averaged 10.4 turnover pregame. If the Bulldogs can play as a team and limit the turnovers per game they have a chance to go very deep in this year’s tournament.