Mark Few's starting lineup decision proved costly in Gonzaga's loss to Saint Mary's

A few weeks ago, Gonzaga had lost a close game at Saint Mary’s to not only fall down a few games in the WCC regular-season title race, but they also found themselves closer to the bubble, not having a very strong resume. In fact, some of their top wins in the non-con, such as Baylor, Arizona State, and Indiana, have struggled in their own respective conferences.

That’s what made Saturday’s home matchup with Saint Mary’s so important. Not only would it put the Bulldogs just one game back in the WCC standings, but it was a Quad 1 opportunity that would’ve locked them up for the NCAA Tournament. That’s why the starting lineup was a very interesting choice.

Instead of Emmanuel Innocenti and Graham Ike starting, walk-on guard Joe Few got the nod. Yes, it was Senior Night, but for such an important game, it was a shock to see Coach Mark Few play his son for the opening stretch of the game.

Saint Mary’s took complete advantage of that, scoring the first nine points of the game before the first timeout was called. The Gaels, who play at the slowest pace in the nation, make every point matter against them. Gonzaga spotted them 11 points to start the game and was down 7-11 points for the first 25 minutes before a big run by the Bulldogs allowed them to tie the game at 46 with 13 minutes to go.

However, the Gaels took control for the rest of the game. Mikey Lewis, a freshman who scored 16 points off the bench in the first go-around, went off again in the second half, scoring 18 points off the bench on 5/7 shooting. Saint Mary’s coasted the rest of the way to win 74-67 and clinch the WCC regular-season title.

Now, Gonzaga finds itself in a must-win situation next week, playing at San Francisco and at Santa Clara. Both are Quad 1 opportunities, so winning both of them should make the Bulldogs feel good about an at-large bid. But this was a bad loss for them, one that must have been over in just the first few minutes.