What Gonzaga’s Mark Few said ahead of rivalry matchup vs. Saint Mary’s

After the kind of 10-day stretch Gonzaga just experienced, having the last week off before hosting Saint Mary's in a pivotal West Coast Conference battle probably benefited the Bulldogs in more ways than one.

For starters, getting seven days to rest and prepare following four games in 10 days granted Graham Ike enough time to heal up from ankle soreness. Few expressed on Thursday during a media availability session that the All-America candidate is expected to play against the Gaels (7:30 p.m. PT Saturday, ESPN) after missing the last three games due to the injury.

Few discussed Ike's health and much more ahead of Saturday's colossal showdown between Gonzaga (21-1, 9-0 WCC) and Saint Mary's (19-3, 8-1 WCC).

On the challenges the Gaels present

"They're just really, really, really solid. They do not beat themselves. They almost always stay between you and the baskets; you have to make shots over the top of them. It sounds simple, but they're, they're really, really solid there. They're always a great rebounding team, and then you're just going to face a lot of middle pick-and-roll and post-ups by their bigs."

St. Mary's Gaels forward Paulius Murauskas (23). | Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

"Now, the little thing that's different this year is [Paulius] Murauskas. He is really, really aggressive and doing a really nice job on the offensive side of things. He's become a really, really good player."

On how his team handled itself without Graham Ike and Braden Huff

"Just spectacularly; guys coming in, making plays and playing different ways. Defensively, we've been really, really active. We've been turning guys over, making plays, making the teams make adjustments with their lineups, even."

Gonzaga Bulldogs guard Jalen Warley (8). | Photo by Myk Crawford

"Obviously Jalen [Warley] has been a huge key to that, and Davis [Fogle] getting in there. I feel like Tyon [Grant-Foster] stepped his game up. We've gotten really big games from different guys during this whole stretch."

On the Gaels' perimeter play

"Mikey Lewis — it seems like he's averaging 30 against us, so obviously we got to do a better job on him. And Murauskas, as I just mentioned, has been very, very aggressive."

St. Mary's Gaels guard Mikey Lewis (0). | Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

"They got a young shooter, Dylan Shaw, that they did a good job recruiting, and he's stepped up and made shots. There's a lot of guys you got to be aware of, and hopefully, like I said, our defense has picked up here these last two weeks, and it'll have to be really on point for us to get it done."

On what he expects the environment to be like on Saturday

"When we do get situations like this, our crowd does rise up. I wish we wouldn't pick and choose which games we do that in, but it is what it is, right? So, yeah, it'll be great. It's what our guys look forward to playing in."

Gonzaga University student section. | Photo by Erik Smith

"I don't really notice that stuff very much, but obviously the energy you can feel before the game. It's just about our guys playing as crazy hard as they can."

On whether he's coached anyone like Jalen Warley before

"That's a great question. I mean, if you think like a guy like Anton [Watson]. He was just so great defensively and had such a good feel for the game and was such a great connector and star. Offensively, he certainly could score in a bunch of different ways."

Gonzaga Bulldogs guard Jalen Warley. | Photo by Myk Crawford

"But Jalen is the best I've ever seen about not worrying about making 3s or anything, and just still playing and elevating his game. We've had some guys really be taken aback by people playing off them, and he's just been great. His effort's great, his team-ness, ability to interact with the guys is great. His defense, obviously, is something that reminds me of Anton ... but no, he's a one-of-a-kind for us."