Gonzaga Basketball: Keys for advancing to Final Four over Texas Tech

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH - MARCH 23: Zach Norvell Jr. #23 of the Gonzaga Bulldogs drives with the ball against Makai Mason #10 of the Baylor Bears during their game in the Second Round of the NCAA Basketball Tournament at Vivint Smart Home Arena on March 23, 2019 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) /

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ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA – MARCH 28: Brandon Clarke #15 of the Gonzaga Bulldogs and Rui Hachimura #21 of the Gonzaga Bulldogs celebrate a play against the Florida State Seminoles during the 2019 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament West Regional at Honda Center on March 28, 2019 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) /

For the third time in five years, No. 1 seed Gonzaga Basketball have advanced to the Elite Eight where they will face No. 3 seed Texas Tech. In a battle of contrasting styles, the Bulldogs will find themselves in another tough battle.

Gonzaga Basketball defeated the Florida St. Seminoles 72-58 Thursday evening in Anaheim to propel head coach Mark Few to his third Elite Eight appearance. Gonzaga, the nation’s best offense, had to grind out a rugged low-post battle against Florida St., but its three-point shooting emerged as the crucial aspect in the Bulldogs‘ victory. The Zags shot 40.3% from the field, well below their national-best average of 53.2%, but nailed seven of 19 three-point attempts.

Along with their hot distance shootings, the Bulldogs’ used strong defense to fend off the Seminoles’ upset bid and their comeback attempts. Florida St. shot 39.3% from the field, including 15% from three, and turned the ball over 14 times. The Zags also used the rebounding battle to secure its 33rd victory of the season, as they pulled down 45 boards compared to the Seminoles’ 36.

Rui Hachimura, Gonzaga’s Wooden Award hopeful and consensus All-American, led the Bulldogs in scoring with 17 points on 6-13 shooting. Brandon Clarke followed closely behind with 15 points and 12 boards, notching his first double-double of the NCAA Tournament, and rejected five shots for the second straight game. Clarke, also a Wooden Award finalist, highlighted his performance with an emphatic put-back dunk on a Hachimura miss with 12:40 remaining to extend the Zags’ lead to 11.

Zach Norvell Jr. and Josh Perkins, Gonzaga’s starting guards, each recorded 14 points. Norvell went 4-12 from the field with all makes coming from behind the arc, his specialty. Perkins shot 4-10, dished five assists and poked away three steals.

The Bulldogs trailed for just ten seconds in their Sweet 16 matchup and, besides a nerving run from the Seminoles with five minutes left, their lead stayed around the nine to 12-point mark for a majority of the game. The towering height and aggressiveness of Florida St. certainly altered Gonzaga’s playing style, but in all, Few’s team did remarkably well against the team of all those in the tournament that matches up with them the best.

Come Saturday evening, the Bulldogs will have their hands full again as the No. 1 offensive team in the nation faces off against the No. 1 defensive team. In a classic battle of offense vs. defense, one factor Gonzaga must continue to excel in is the part it didn’t against Florida St.; dominant post play.