Gonzaga, BYU revisit heated WCC rivalry for one final time in Spokane: Preview
Gonzaga and BYU have butted heads in one of the most heated rivalries in college basketball over the last dozen years.
It started in 2011, when Jimmer Fredette erupted for 34 points in an 89-67 win over Robert Sacre and the Zags in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, sending the Cougars to the Sweet 16 for the first time in over 30 years.
The 22-point victory is BYU’s largest margin of victory in the head-to-head series, which has been dominated by Gonzaga since the two programs officially became conference rivals in the 2011-12 season. The Zags have won 23 of the last 29 meetings, including six straight, but the memorable moments along the way won’t be forgotten.
Kyle Wiltjer kicked off Gonzaga’s decade-long run as the WCC’s regular season champion when he scored 21 points to help the Zags claim a share of the conference title in a 71-68 win in Provo, Utah in 2016.
BYU played the ultimate spoiler role in 2017 when Eric Mika’s 29 points and 11 rebounds were enough to hand undefeated Gonzaga its lone loss of the regular season on senior night. Przemek Karnowski, Jordan Mathews, Nigel Williams-Goss and Jonathan Williams all walked off the McCarthey Athletic Center floor for the final time in an unfamiliar position on the losing side.
Most recently, Julian Strawther etched his name into the rivalry’s lore when he knocked down the game-winning 3-pointer in the Zags’ 75-74 win over the Cougars on Jan. 12.
Now, the Zags (20-5, 9-2) will look to defend their home court against the Cougars (16-11, 6-6) for the last time as WCC rivals on Saturday. Tipoff is at 7 p.m.
Gonzaga head coach Mark Few acknowledged the rivalry’s significance to both programs, but nostalgia will take a backseat to the present until the final buzzer.
“I’ll probably be sentimental after the game or something,” Few said. “But prior to it, it's just, they're definitely playing their best ball right now.”
The Cougars are backed by a stingy defense that forces 14.6 turnovers per game, the most in the WCC, while allowing the second-fewest points per game in the league at 69.1. They’ve held their opponents to shoot worse than 50% from the floor in 15 of their last 18 games. While Saint Mary’s defense garners a lot of attention, and rightfully so, BYU’s defensive efficiency is second in the conference right behind the Gaels.
Fousseyni Traore and Atiki Ally Atiki lead the defensive effort for BYU. Traore leads the WCC in total rebound percentage while ranking top-10 in defensive rating and defensive win shares. Atiki has been one of the best rim defenders as his 26 blocks are the third-most in the league.
Despite a stout defense, the Cougars have lost four of their last six games due in part to some struggles on offense. BYU ranks 159th in offensive efficiency and 39th in defensive efficiency according to KenPom.
That discrepancy doesn’t bode well when it comes to keeping up with the league’s best-scoring offenses. The Cougars are 3-8 in games this season in which they allow more than 75 points.
Meanwhile, Gonzaga’s offense leads the country with 86.2 points per game while shooting 52% from the field. The Zags are also first in effective field goal percentage at 58.2%. Drew Timme’s 21.2 points per game are the most in the WCC.
In the first head-to-head matchup this season, Timme’s 19 points and 12 rebounds paced all scorers in a game in which the Cougars outshot the Zags from the floor and from deep. Timme and Anton Watson dominated upfront, as Gonzaga outrebounded and outscored BYU in the paint.
With so many memories embedded in such a heated yet relatively short-lived rivalry, Saturday’s matchup will be one to remember as the Zags and Cougars square off as WCC rivals for the last time.
Prediction: Zags 84, Cougars 78
