Gonzaga Basketball: 3 keys for Bulldogs to defeat No. 16 Virginia Cavaliers

Start with the “death lineup”

One thing about Virginia’s defense is that there aren’t any surprises. They aren’t overly physical like a West Virginia or will force a ton of steals like Syracuse or VCU. But that’s what makes the Cavaliers so annoying for defenders. They’re nearly impossible to simulate in practice, other than needing nearly all 30 seconds to try and get a remotely good shot.

It’s a nightmare for younger guards to try to facilitate an offense against them, which is why Duke and North Carolina have their annual issues against Virginia, despite having better talent on paper. For Gonzaga, it’ll be freshman Jalen Suggs turn. As good as he has looked, the Cavaliers have the ability to apply their own “freshman” wall towards opponents.

It’ll be interesting to see who they put on Suggs, as their own starter, Kihei Clark, is just 5’9. Expect it to be a collective effort from all of the guards to apply pressure and maybe a little fullcourt press to really slow it down.

But this is where Gonzaga could really use its “death lineup”. Instead of starting Anton Watson at the four-spot, Kispert would slide there and have Florida transfer Andrew Nembhard start alongside Suggs to have two true point guards on the court. With Hauser not a giant threat at the power forward spot and Joel Ayayi more than capable of playing at small forward, this lineup would have no negative consequences defensive and maximum potential offensively.

This would take all of the pressure off of Suggs to deliver and force Virginia to have to deal with multiple ball-handlers that can initiate the offense. This would increase their chances of fastbreak opportunities and allow them to focus on the smaller Clark.

In the last game against Northwestern State, Nembhard got the start over Watson and Gonzaga started off with a 19-4 lead. Watson will be needed against Hauser and Huff but the Bulldogs will need to set their own pace on offense to put the Cavaliers on their toes. Their best lineups involve both Nembhard and Suggs and there’s no reason not to use it early, and often.