Gonzaga Basketball: 3 keys to defeating Texas Tech in top 25 matchup

Leverage your size down low

Since Beard’s time at the helm, the Raiders have prioritized interchangeable, positionless talent to keep their defensive pressure as high as possible. While nobody on the court will be shorter than 6-foot-5, freshman Daniel Batcho is the lone man who is taller than 6-foot-8, playing less than 13 minutes per game (17.2 minute average over the last 5 games).

That lack of size could mean another big night for the frontcourt as Timme had a career-high 37 points against a similarly sized Texas. This also likely means that we can expect plenty of visits to the charity stripe as Tech is in the bottom third of college basketball in opponent free throw rate.

The size is also an interesting wrench in the Red Raiders’ style as they love to crash the glass on offense, resulting in 15.11 offensive rebounds per game, the fifth-highest average in college basketball. Their offensive rebounding rate of 43.7% is the second-highest in the country.

If the Zags can come down with a solid percentage of the rebounds not only do they limit second-chance points but they also operate in transition with numbers. And if the Zags get out in fastbreak, this game may not be the nail-biter that we may have originally expected.