Gonzaga hosts Eastern Oregon before beginning WCC play
For the past week, the Gonzaga men’s basketball team has enjoyed a much-needed holiday break.
The tenth-ranked Zags (10-3) played seven AP Top 25 programs in the first eight weeks of the season. The team made trips to six different states and traveled roughly 17,700 miles.
After getting time off to rest and recover, Gonzaga returns to action on Wednesday when it hosts Eastern Oregon (7-4) at 2 p.m. PST. It will be the Zags’ final nonconference game ahead of its West Coast Conference slate, which begins on Dec. 31 against Pepperdine at home.
Gonzaga defeated EOU 115-62 last season in an exhibition, but this time around, the result counts toward the Zags’ win/loss record. The contest will remain a scrimmage for the Mountaineers, who are an NAIA program.
Spokane is EOU’s first stop of a three-game road trip, as it will also make visits to Lewis-Clark State in Lewiston, ID., and Walla Walla in College Place, WA., before heading back home to La Grande, OR.
Heading into Wednesday’s matchup, the Mountaineers are coming off back-to-back wins, as they defeated Warner Pacific 102-83 on Dec. 16 and Multnomah 101-78 on Dec. 17.
EOU senior guard Emmit Taylor III led the way for his team against Warner Pacific, finishing with 27 points on 9-of-15 shooting from the field. The Idaho State transfer also showed off his accuracy from the 3-point range, where he made 4-of-9 attempts.
Taylor III added 14 points against Multnomah, but it was guard Phillip Malatare who topped the team in scoring with 21 points on 10-of-15 shooting. Malatare averages a team-high 17. 2 points, 6.1 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game.
However, while EOU’s backcourt production is noteworthy, it’s been a much different story for the Zags.
Forward Drew Timme has been Gonzaga’s No. 1 scorer in each of his team’s last five games, all of which ended as wins.
Timme has averaged 27.6 points, 10.2 rebounds and 4.0 assists during the Zags’ five-game winning streak. He is also the recipient of consecutive WCC Player of the Week awards.
“Just doing whatever it takes to win,” Timme said after Gonzaga’s most recent win over Montana. “That’s what has been needed of me lately, so that’s what I do.”
Defeating Montana marked the Zags’ 72nd victory in a row at the McCarthey Athletic Center, breaking the record for the longest home-winning streak in the modern era (since 1985).
“That's crazy,” Timme said of the accomplishment. “Obviously, that’s something that no one can really say they’ve ever done. It’s a testament to coach [Mark Few] and how he’s ran the ship and he’s always consistent.”
Gonzaga’s number of consecutive home wins could stretch to 73 on Wednesday, but it would still remain far behind Kentucky’s streak of 129 from 1943-1955.
