Gonzaga embracing 'new year, fresh start' mentality for road game vs. Santa Clara

Bulldogs begin a three-game road stretch against the Broncos on Thursday

The Gonzaga men's basketball team (11-4, 2-0 WCC) leaves the comforts of Spokane for the next two weeks as it embarks on a three-game road stretch, starting with a trip to Santa Clara on Thursday.

"It’s going to be a challenge for us," Bulldogs assistant coach Brian Michaelson said on Gonzaga Nation. "Just to be on the road for the first time [in WCC play] too. [Santa Clara] is up there with one of the best league environments by far."

The Bulldogs turned over a new leaf to start league play, as they shot the ball with confidence and leaned on their posts in back-to-back blowouts over Pepperdine and San Diego last week. The backcourt feasted from behind the arc, starting with Nolan Hickman's season-high four triples in the 86-60 triumph over the Waves. On Saturday it was Ryan Nembhard, who entered the game shooting 18.6% on his 3-point attempts. But the past didn't matter, as he stepped up and went 4-for-5 from deep to help down the Toreros, 101-74.

After Thursday's win at the Spokane Arena, Nembhard mentioned how the team was adapting a "new year, fresh start" kind of mindset going into WCC play. 

Gonzaga's Brian Michaelson on why the Bulldogs will 'have to be a lot better' to win at Santa Clara

"We got guys that are working at [3-point shooting] every day and people don't see that," said Ben Gregg after the win over San Diego. "They just see the numbers in games. We're playing at a high level right now. We know what it took to get us here. And everybody's been staying consistent with the reps in the gym."

Gregg, following what he called a "mediocre" start to the season for him personally, was anything but that in a 22-point night against the Toreros, setting a career-high in points, field goals made and attempted (8-of-15), steals (four) and minutes played (25). The energy and emotion he's been known to bring off the bench throughout his career was there from the moment he stepped on the floor. Upon checking in, he picked off an errant pass at the top of the key, raced upcourt and threw down a two-hand dunk, even cracking a smile as he got back on defense as if he knew it was about to be his night.

Graham Ike had a dominant presence down low in each WCC outing, with 20 points against Pepperdine followed by 19 on Saturday. He's created more opportunities for himself by getting his touches closer to the rim, and the guards have rewarded his efforts as such. Over his last two games, Ike shot a combined 16-for-22 from the field.

Yet for all the positive takeaways from the celebratory weekend, the Bulldogs know what they're up against on Thursday down in Santa Clara.

"We’re going to have to be a lot better to win at Santa Clara than we were this weekend," Michaelson said. "We have to continue to get better every week."

Michaelson's comments were about Gonzaga's standing in the NET Rankings, where it checks in at No. 45. That's nine spots up from where the team was at the start of WCC play, even though both wins count as Quad 4 games. A win over Santa Clara (103rd in the NET) would be a resume boost as a Quad 2 win. Gonzaga is 2-0 against Quad 2 opponents this season with wins over USC (84th) and Syracuse (75th). 

The path to 3-0 is easier said than done when facing a revamped Santa Clara squad that boasts height and versatility at numerous positions. Herb Sendek is among the best coaches at finding and recruiting hidden talent he's plucked from the transfer portal, evidenced by Jalen Williams and Brandin Podziemski leaving campus as first-round picks in the 2022 and 2023 NBA Drafts, respectively. Almost equally as impressive, Sendek has done a great job at reshuffling the deck with more talent despite losing key contributors.

This season is no exception, as Arizona transfer guard Adama-Alpha Bal is having a breakout season some thought he would have last year. The 6-foot-7 wing is third in WCC at 15.9 points per game, while shooting 49.4% from the floor and 41.0% on 3-point attempts. He'll come into the Leavey Center with a lot of confidence after putting up 21 and 28 points in the Broncos' (11-6, 2-0 WCC) wins over Loyola Marymount and Pepperdine last week.

Bal has risen to No. 12 on NBADraft.net's 2024 mock draft with his play as of late. Needless to say, he'll be a tough cover for Gonzaga's backcourt, which got hit with 24 points from San Diego's Deuce Turner. Nembhard and Hickman were effective defensively against Pepperdine's Houston Mallette and Ethan Anderson, as the former shot 2-for-9 from the floor while the latter committed three turnovers.

Carlos Marshall Jr. has returned from injury in a big way, as the Tennessee State transfer played only three games in his first season at Santa Clara. He's put up 14.2 points and 5.6 rebounds per game while knocking down a team-high 35 3-pointers this season. Marshall Jr. also leads the team with a 61.8% effective field goal percentage.

Overall, Santa Clara has excelled from behind the arc as it leads the conference at 37.4% shooting on 3-point attempts. The offense is third in the league averaging 76.4 points. Much of that has had to do with stellar backcourt play and solid frontcourt contributions.

Per KenPom, Santa Clara is fifth in the nation for average height due to its big guards and pair of 7-footers in Christoph Tilly and Francisco Caffaro. Starting with Tilly, the sophomore from Germany has shot 35-of-50 (70%) on field goal attempts at the rim per hoop-math.com. He flashed what he truly can do in a 20-point performance against Southeastern Louisiana earlier this season.

Caffaro is hard to keep off the glass. He's fifth in the league with 39 offensive boards, amounting to 2.3 per game. The 7-1 Argentinian has been key to Santa Clara's winning the rebounding battle, as the Broncos have outrebounded their opponents in 13 of 17 games this season.

Gonzaga didn't pass its first true road test against Washington earlier this season, and no doubt the Leavey Center will be rocking for Thursday's game. Nolan Hickman rescued the Zags last season with a couple of clutch buckets in an 81-76 victory. This time around could very well be decided by a similar margin: KenPom's metric favors Gonzaga by eight, while SI Sportsbook has the line set at Gonzaga -9.5. 

Adam Morrison on Gonzaga's road game at Santa Clara: ‘It’ll be a big test for us’