Gonzaga Basketball: Keys to success against Eastern Washington

SPOKANE, WASHINGTON - DECEMBER 18: Gonzaga Bulldogs t-shirts are draped over stadium seats prior to the game between the North Carolina Tar Heels and the Gonzaga Bulldogs at McCarthey Athletic Center on December 18, 2019 in Spokane, Washington. (Photo by William Mancebo/Getty Images) /

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TUCSON, ARIZONA – DECEMBER 14: Ayayi of Gonzaga defends. (Photo by Jennifer Stewart/Getty Images) /

3. Defend the 3-point line.

Gonzaga is definitely the better team in this matchup while also boasting home-court advantage. As a result, the Bulldogs should win this one with ease (15+ points). With that said, though, the 3-point line has the potential to be the great equalizer for underdogs in contests such as this one. It is also important to mention that defending the perimeter appears to be a weakness for Gonzaga this season. North Carolina, most notably, was able to consistently find open shooters for three in Gonzaga’s last game. Granted, the Tar Heels struggled on those shots, but it wasn’t the Bulldogs’ best defensive effort in that area.

Eastern Washington, though, represents a tougher challenge with regard to 3-point shooting. To this point in the season, the Eagles are shooting 34.4% from beyond the arc while ranking 27th in the nation in 3PAr. They are not afraid of letting it fly from distance whatsoever and they might be able to stay within striking range in this game if Gonzaga allows them to get hot. Perhaps most notably, the Bulldogs will have to constantly stay glued to the likes of Kim Aiken and Jacob Davison. Aiken is averaging 16.1 points and 11.8 rebounds per game as a 6-foot-7 hidden gem of a sophomore while Davison is leading the team at 18.1 points per game.

They are combining to shoot 47-for-129 (36.4%) from three in 10 games so far this season while 6-foot-2 freshman Casson Rouse is also 15-for-38 (39.5%) in a sharpshooting role. Eastern Washington has shooters and Gonzaga will need to be prepared to lock them up. If the Eagles are able to get hot, they just might make this one interesting. That is not something that the Bulldogs would like to let happen as they should win this one by double-digits to continue asserting themselves among the best in the nation.

Next. Week 7 Bracketology Field of 68. dark

While this game does have the makings of a potential letdown performance by the Bulldogs, I believe that they will come out strong and put the hammer down early. Gonzaga is hungry to compete for the national title this season and the team is equipped to keep dominating its opposition.

Final score prediction: Gonzaga Bulldogs – 95, Eastern Washington Eagles – 78.