What to watch for as Gonzaga takes on Campbell in final non-conference home game

The Zags host the Camels on Wednesday at the Kennel

Gonzaga Bulldogs guard Davis Fogle. | Photo by Myk Crawford

Mark Few and the Gonzaga Bulldogs are in the home stretch of the non-conference slate, with just two games remaining before WCC play gets underway.

The first of those is on Wednesday, Dec. 17, against the Campbell Camels out of the CAA. The game is slated to tip at 6:00 PM and will be Gonzaga's final non-conference game at the McCarthey Athletic Center in 2025, with Sunday's battle against Oregon on Dec. 21 taking place at the Moda Center in Portland.

Campbell (5-5) is the final of Gonzaga's four non-conference games against mid-major teams, but the Camels are a far better opponent than the previous three. Coming in at No. 217 overall at KenPom, Campbell is much more well-regarded than Southern Utah (316), Texas Southern (326) and North Florida (334), who Gonzaga defeated by 72, 55, and 51 points, respectively.

Still, the Camels haven't exactly shone on the floor. Two of the team's five wins are against non-DI opponents, while the others are UT Arlington (KP: 167), Western Michigan (255), and Ball State (317), who they beat on Monday...by five points.

Coach John Andrzejek's team has played four power conference opponents and was blown out by three of them, first by Wisconsin on opening night by 32 points, then by Wake Forest (48 points) during Feast Week and again by Penn State (13 points) back on Dec. 2.

The Camels did play well against West Virginia in an eight-point loss, but they don't project to put up a huge fight against Gonzaga on Wednesday.

So what can Zags fans expect to see at the Kennel on Wednesday, besides a lot of holiday cheer in the student section? Here are a few things to watch for:

1. Davis Fogle highlights

Gonzaga Bulldogs guard Davis Fogle (4). | Photo by Erik Smith

Gonzaga freshman Davis Fogle has appeared in eight games so far this season, and he's scored two or fewer points in half of them.

However, when he's given a real chance to stretch his legs, it's been highlight reel after highlight reel. The 6'7 wing is a deft scorer in transition and in isolation, and when Gonzaga gets up big and lets him loose for the final 10-15 minutes...look out.

Fogle notched 11 points and five rebounds on 5-8 shooting in the team's season opener against Texas Southern, in just ten minutes of action.

Then he scored a career-high 19 points on 7-10 shooting in 15 minutes against Southern Utah, recording a pair of steals and a block for good measure. He had eight points and four boards on seven shot attempts in six minutes against Maryland, and most recently dropped 15 on 7-10 shooting in 18 minutes against North Florida.

For the folks mathing at home, that's 13.5 points in 12.2 minutes across those four games, or an average of 44.3 points per 40 minutes.

The Camels should pose a bit more of a challenge to Gonzaga, but it would not be a surprise to see the 4-star recruit getting buckets for most of the second half on Wednesday.

2. Familiar face for Camels

Feb 15, 2025; Spokane, Washington, USA; Pepperdine Waves forward Dovydas Butka (13) controls the ball against Gonzaga Bulldogs forward Jun Seok Yeo (22) in the second half at McCarthey Athletic Center. | James Snook-Imagn Images

Campbell's second leading scorer and the CAA's leader in field goal percentage, Dovydas Butka, will be a familiar face for Mark Few and this Gonzaga squad. Butka, who is from Lithuania, played at Pepperdine last year as a sophomore. He averaged 9.6 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 2.2 assists for the Waves last year, and scored 11 points with nine rebounds in two contests against the Zags.

Butka transferred to Campbell to team up with his younger brother, Dominykas, who is a freshman for the Camels. It's paid off so far for both sides, with Dovydas averaging 16.4 points, 8.9 rebounds, and 2.1 assists through ten games. He'll have his hands full with Gonzaga's frontcourt on Wednesday, but at least he has some idea of what he'll be going up against.

3. Bounce back for Tyon Grant-Foster

Gonzaga Bulldogs forward Tyon Grant-Foster (7). | Photo by Myk Crawford

After a really strong start to the season, Tyon Grant-Foster has performed unevenly for Gonzaga over the past couple of weeks. The 6'7 wing is coming off a quiet seven-point performance on Saturday against UCLA, where he missed both his three-point attempts to drag his season average down to 15.4%.

However, Grant-Foster has often bounced back from his not-so-great games with strong performances right away, and Wednesday could be the perfect opportunity for him. Campbell has little in the way of rim protection and commits quite a few fouls, which could lead to plenty of scoring opportunities for TGF - not to mention the freedom to go after steals and easy points in transition.

Don't be surprised to see Gonzaga's big-time transfer portal addition scoring frequently on Wednesday. It's a sight Zag fans will hope becomes more consistent as the year goes on.