What Gonzaga's Mark Few said after NCAA Tournament win vs. Georgia

The Zags thumped the SEC's Bulldogs and will play No. 1 seed Houston on Saturday

Cole Forsman | Mar 20, 2025

Mar 20, 2025; Wichita, KS, USA; Gonzaga Bulldogs head coach Mark Few in the first half of a first round men’s NCAA Tournament game against the Georgia Bulldogs at Intrust Bank Arena. / Nick Tre. Smith-Imagn Images

In this story:

Gonzaga Bulldogs

Gonzaga is moving on to the second round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament after throttling Georgia in what was essentially a no-contest from the opening jump at INTRUST Bank Arena in Wichita, Kansas.

The Zags (26-8, 14-4 WCC) jumped out to a 13-0 lead before the first media timeout and never looked back, as Khalif Battle scored a team-high 24 points in his tournament debut, Braden Huff and Nolan Hickman combined for 36 points and Gonzaga went 12-of-22 from 3-point range to come away with an 89-68 victory on Thursday.

The Zags, who've now won 16 straight first round games, will play No. 1 seed Houston, Saturday, at INTRUST Bank Arena.

Here's what head coach Mark Few had to say following the game.

On the keys to Gonzaga's stifling defense against Georgia:

"I think making plays. I thought our guys were really aggressive. We played as physical as we could. We knew Georgia was a very, very physical team. We saw that on tape. For the most part, especially in the first half, we limited them to any easy baskets and cut down their 3s. I think the only place they hurt us was the free-throw line."

On the 3-pointers from Hickman and Battle:

"Yeah hey I wish we could shoot it like that every night. It would be awesome, and we probably wouldn't lose. You know, that's basketball. When shots are going in, it's an old coaching adage, everything looks better. Our defense has been rock solid here these last two, three weeks. Even maybe into a month here. I'm glad [our defense] was able to travel, and I'm glad it was able to function against a high-level team like Georgia."

On Gonzaga's consistent success and his ability to manage student-athletes:

"Hey, it starts with having great players. We've had an incredible run of great players and the best thing when you get players at Gonzaga, they're coachable. They listen because they understand that if everybody is on the same page, it really leads to winning, and that's why they came to GU in the first place."

On the notion that this not a "vintage" Gonzaga team:

"No, I mean, look, I think it is a vintage Gonzaga team because it got itself to the NCAA Tournament and it's advancing. I think sometimes when the standard is national championship or bust, it's hard to live up to it. It's hard for me to live with myself sometimes. After doing [the Paris Olympics with Team USA] and winning a gold medal this summer, you want more. Winning is kind of addictive, as Steve Kerr says."

"I think teams take time sometimes, and I think this team right now is playing like we all envisioned it playing. It was great to do it on, like I said, the biggest stage, but now we've got a huge challenge coming down the pipes here. We're playing a great team and a great program [in Houston], much like ourselves, in this next game."