Gonzaga battles Xavier in bounce-back game at PK85

The No. 6 Bulldogs are coming off their worst offensive performance of the season

In the midst of a difficult stretch of nonconference opponents, it’s been anything but a cakewalk for the No. 6 Gonzaga Bulldogs (4-2) in the early goings of the 2022-23 season.

Friday night’s loss to Purdue was the latest test of strength for Mark Few’s squad. Gonzaga shot a season-worst 40.3% from the field in the 18-point defeat, as the offense couldn’t keep up with the Boilermakers, who dominated behind Zach Edey’s 15 second-half points.

For Drew Timme, the outcome of the ballgame came down to the little things.

“If we just do the basics, it’s a totally different game,” Timme said. “When we see the film we’re going to be like ‘are you freaking kidding me, this is what we did?’ and it starts with me.”

Timme poured in 23 points in the losing effort as the rest of his squad combined to shoot 17-for-51 from the field.

The Bulldogs now turn their attention to Xavier in the third-place game of the Phil Knight Legacy Invitational.

The Musketeers (4-2) lost to No. 8 Duke, 71-64, on Friday in the semifinal round despite 23 points from Souley Boum. Sean Miller’s group led early before two significant runs spanning between the first and second halves by the Blue Devils changed the course of the ballgame.

Xavier’s balanced offensive attack is led by Souley Boum, a former San Francisco Don who’s found his groove since arriving in Cincinnati, Ohio as a graduate student. The 6-foot-3 guard has averaged 22.5 points per game through two games in the PK85 tournament and has led the team in scoring through its first six games this season while shooting the ball at an efficient rate from the field.

Four other Musketeers average double-figures in scoring, including playmaking guard and Julius Erving award contender Colby Jones. A preseason Big East First Team member, the junior is fifth in the conference with 5.6 assists to go along with 14.4 points per outing. Against Florida, he scored a career-high 22 points on 8-for-12 shooting from the field.

Jones isn’t the only Musketeer to be recognized during the preseason; graduate student Jack Nunge has lived up to expectations after being named to the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar watch list. His 14.8 points and 6.8 rebounds per game are second on the squad and top-15 in the Big East overall. Despite a woeful 1-for-13 shooting performance against the Blue Devils, the 7-footer is poised for a bounce-back game against the Zags.

The Musketeers' offense is 67th in adjusted tempo, according to KenPom, a drastic difference from the Boilermakers who ranked 333rd in the same category. Protecting the rim will be imperative once again though; over 45.6% of Xavier’s shots this season have come in the paint.

Coach Few acknowledged the challenge of defending the Musketeers' big men and the similarities between his and coach Miller’s programs.

“It’s really going to test us again,” Few said. “[Miller’s] got some experienced guys. He’s obviously a heck of a coach and defensively they’ll be hard-nosed.”

There’s little reason to believe Few won’t have his team ready to respond following an abysmal performance to get back on track. The Bulldogs came out energized and focused against Kentucky after the Texas loss and they find themselves in a similar situation on Sunday as they look to avoid back-to-back losses for the first time in the Timme era.

Prediction: Zags 86, Musketeers 72