Gonzaga throttles Arkansas-Pine Bluff at home: 'It was just a really mature approach by the whole team'

Bulldogs handled the Golden Lions in a 40-point blowout that saw all 10 players get involved offensively

Cole Forsman | Dec 6, 2023

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Gonzaga Bulldogs

There wasn't a whole lot Mark Few could complain about after his No. 7 Gonzaga Bulldogs made quick work of Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Tuesday night.

The Bulldogs (7-1) jumped out to a 28-2 lead over the Golden Lions (4-6) on the back of a 21-0 scoring run before it was time for the second media timeout. The run-and-gun style of play backfired for the visitors, while the Bulldogs got essentially every look they wanted on the offensive end in the 111-71 blowout. All 10 players who touched the floor scored, with six finishing in double-figures led by 19 points from Braden Huff.

Graham Ike added 17 points and nine rebounds, while Anton Watson chipped in 15 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Jun Seok Yeo, who made his first official start in his career on Tuesday, had 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting from the field.

With pretty much every box checked from Tuesday's game, Few has turned his focus to Saturday's in-state battle with the Washington Huskies on Saturday.

Here are three takeaways from Gonzaga's win over Pine Bluff.

ANOTHER FAST START

Ryan Nembhard — Photo by Erik Smith, Myk Crawford

The last time the Bulldogs trailed their opponent in a ballgame, they were outside the mainland in Honolulu, Hawaii, battling UCLA in the Maui Invitational. Credit the Bruins, who battled back from an early double-digit difference, but overall the Bulldogs have been able to not only start fast, but also keep their foot on the gas pedal for an entire 40 minutes. It hasn't been completely smooth sailing since the loss to Purdue, though the attention to detail from the opening tip has been a common characteristic of the program in recent seasons.

"I think we've done a pretty good job of starting games," Few said. "It was just a really mature approach by the whole team. And it's very business-like."

The Bulldogs' mentality out of the starting gate led to them converting 13-of-16 from the floor to start, as they built a 20-point lead less than five minutes into the game. Defensively, they forced the Golden Lions to hoist a lot of contested 3-pointers that simply didn't fall. Pine Bluff missed its first 14 shot attempts, as the first field goal didn't come until the 11:34 mark.

The Bulldogs came out with a similar mental sharpness against USC when they jumped out to a 15-2 lead over the Trojans. Obviously, a quick start doesn't matter without a strong finish, but by creating a wide margin early, the Bulldogs have been able to set the tone and pace that forces the opposition to make quick adjustments. As long as they maintain their focus throughout, even an extended scoring run from an opponent won't be hard to weather for Gonzaga.

THE ROTATION EXPANDS

Gonzaga Arkansas Pine-Bluff41 — Photo by Erik Smith, Myk Crawford

"We're actually trying to grow some of those other guys to you know, get more minutes, more experiences and all that and get a little more depth," Few said. "It works both ways. You've got to be able to function out there on the floor too. That's the sole reason why I threw Jun into the starting lineup."

Thrust into the starting lineup, it took a few minutes for Yeo to find his bearings. He had one rebound and no points after being subbed out five minutes into the action, as he struggled to keep pace with his teammates on both ends of the floor. It wasn't until the final eight minutes of the game that he started to put the ball in the basket, finishing with 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting from the floor.

Yeo still had his moments that didn't show up in the box score, as did Luka Krajnovic in bunches. The Croatian guard had seven points, three rebounds and three assists while dictating the second-unit offense. He showed aggression on back-to-back scores in the paint in the first half, though like Yeo, he wasn't able to thrive until the game was certainly out of reach.

Few isn't afraid to play some of his starters 40 minutes in a close ballgame if he sees fit, yet he's made it a goal to create more opportunities for others when possible. Gonzaga has two more games this month against Southwestern Athletic Conference teams - Mississippi Valley State and Jackson State - which means more experience for Yeo, Krajnovic and others.

ON TO THE HUSKIES

Mark Few — Photo by Erik Smith, Myk Crawford

Few was ready to move onto more pressing matters once the final buzzer sounded, which meant looking ahead to Saturday's matchup against Washington in Seattle.

"It's a really, really big game," Few said. "So we're expecting a great effort from the Huskies and great effort from the crowd."

Few admitted he hadn't seen much of the new-look Huskies (5-3) this season, though he's familiar with two of Mike Hopkins' additions from the transfer portal. Kentucky transfer Sahvir Wheeler battled Gonzaga last season, as did Portland defect Moses Wood. Both have come in and delivered immediately as staples in the offense, while fifth-year forward Keion Brooks Jr. stars as the go-to guy for Hopkins.

Brooks is top five in the Pac-12 in scoring at 20.2 points per game, with Wheeler not far behind at 16. 1 points. Wheeler, along with fifth-year guard Paul Mulcahy, has spearheaded an unselfish style of play that leads to 17.1 assists per game for the Huskies. The team has finished with 20 or more assists in two of their last four outings, evidence that the experienced group has built noticeable continuity in recent weeks.

It will be quite the test for Gonzaga against the in-state rival ranked 66th in KenPom. Especially considering that it's the Bulldogs' first true road game in a hostile environment.