What Mark Few said after Gonzaga’s 95-76 win at Santa Clara

“I go to bed every night and thank the Lord that he’s our point guard.”

Gonzaga Bulldogs head coach Mark Few. / Photo by Erik Smith, Myk Crawford

Gonzaga senior point guard Ryan Nembhard matched his career best with 15 assists to break the West Coast Conference single-season assist record and the Zags had a much-needed statement win, 95-76 against the Broncos, as they fight for the No. 2 seed in the conference tournament and to quell talk about being on the NCAA Tournament bubble.

Nembhard had 12 points to go with his 15 assists. Graham Ike had a game-high 24 points on 11-of-13 shooting, Khalif Battle had 14 of his 21 points in the first half, when the Zags took control; Nolan Hickman had 11 points; and 7-foot freshman Ismaila Diagne came up big off the bench on both ends of the court, with nine points, four rebounds and a big blocked shot in his first significant minutes.

Asked how much he appreciates Nembhard, who now has 295 assists this season, head coach Mark Few said in a postgame interview with Gonzaga beat writer Theo Lawson: “I go to bed every night and thank the Lord that he’s our point guard. You sleep a lot better when you’ve got a point guard like that who can just manage the game. He’s been incredible. He’s having an incredible year, an absolutely incredible year, and in my opinion he hasn’t gotten enough attention for it.”

Here’s what Few said after Gonzaga bounced back from a loss to Saint Mary’s.

Few on Nembhard getting the record

Gonzaga Bulldogs guard Ryan Nembhard (0) drives to the net against Santa Clara Broncos forward Camaron Tongue (21). / Neville E. Guard-Imagn Images

“I’m happy for him. He’s a special, special player. It’s so well-deserved for him to be able to put his name on a record that will last quite some time. It’s hard to accrue those kind of numbers.”

Few on the big night overall

Gonzaga Bulldogs guard Nolan Hickman (11) shoots against Santa Clara Broncos guard Tyeree Bryan (1). / Neville E. Guard-Imagn Images

“That’s a great win. We withstood every kind of adversity you can possibly think of, from them making their first eight 3’s, and most of them were heavily guarded, to the massive foul trouble we were in. It’s crazy stuff. What a win.”

Few on Diagne’s impact

Santa Clara Broncos forward Elijah Mahi (8) shoots the basketball against Gonzaga Bulldogs center Ismaila Diagne (24). / Neville E. Guard-Imagn Images

“It’s more about he’s just been such a positive force on this team. He’s just such an incredibly positive person, he’s just so upbeat and so inspirational to our guys. I told him that afterward, he deserved that and maybe something good was going to happen because of how he handled himself during this whole time.”

Few on Diagne being a force

“He’s always given us a great rim protector. He just had the knee thing and then he had a concussion and then he was sick, and he’s playing behind two really good guys at his position. But boy he sure showed up big tonight and saved the game for us.”

Few on Diagne’s preparation

“It’s not easy to stay ready if you’re him. He hasn’t played, basically, all year. He’s done a wonderful job of staying positive, I think is the biggest thing, and not hanging his head and feeling sorry for himself."

Few on Diagne influencing shots

“Tons. We were able to change our coverage and then you don’t have to help and we were able to shut down and stay on the 3-point shooter and so it totally changes your coverage and then you kind of live with some tough 2’s and he protects the rim."

Few on shutting down the Broncos’ 3-point shooters

Santa Clara's Carlos Stewart Jr. (10) shoots a three point basket against Gonzaga's Graham Ike (13). / Neville E. Guard-Imagn Images

“It was mostly that coverage. That coverage allows you to stick to guys. It limits your dribble-penetration.”

MORE GONZAGA NEWS & ANALYSIS

• Ryan Nembhard sets WCC assists record: 3 takeaways from Gonzaga’s big win at Santa Clara

• Gonzaga back on the bubble in latest NCAA Tournament projections

• Despite Saint Mary’s loss Gonzaga still near top of college basketball rankings

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