Saint Mary's @ Gonzaga preview
McCarthey Athletic Center
Last Meeting ( Mar 8, 2021 ) Saint Mary's 55, Gonzaga 78
The West Coast Conference is receiving national praise for being a tougher league than it's been in recent seasons.
That hasn't been evident when No. 2 Gonzaga takes the court, as the Bulldogs keep steamrolling their conference foes.
No. 22 Saint Mary's (20-5, 8-2 WCC) will take its shot at giving Gonzaga (20-2, 9-0) a competitive game when it visits Spokane, Wash., on Saturday night.
The Bulldogs have won their nine WCC games this season by an average of 30.6 points. Seven of them have been decided by 30 or more points, including the past five.
Only San Francisco got beat by fewer than 20 points when it fell 78-62 at The Kennel on Jan. 20. Overall, the Zags have won their past 13 games.
Gonzaga posted its 30th consecutive WCC win on Thursday when it routed Pacific, 89-51. But Bulldogs forward Drew Timme is expecting a battle against the Gaels, who have won eight of their past nine games.
"They are always a hard opponent to play," Timme said after Thursday's win. "They come to play and they always pose a big challenge to us."
Making Saint Mary's task tougher is this fact: The Zags have won their past 65 home games, the longest streak in the nation.
On the same night Gonzaga reached 20 wins for the 25th consecutive season, the Gaels reached that milestone for the 14th time in the past 15 seasons with an 86-57 home rout of San Diego.
Logan Johnson fueled the easy win with 16 points, a career-high nine rebounds and a career-best-tying five steals in 27 minutes. He leads the WCC with 54 thefts.
Johnson helped spark a 17-1 run in the first half as Saint Mary's broke the game open. In one 22-second span, he twice stole the ball and drove for layups.
"Logan was inspiring, just how hard he played that first half," Gaels coach Randy Bennett told reporters. "He showed tremendous leadership by that. He's an elite defender. He's as good as anybody in this league. He just brought that intensity."
Johnson, a senior who averages 10.8 points, is looking to bring high energy into the showdown with Gonzaga.
"It's always fun playing there and competing," Johnson said. "We're going to try to scrap one out like we try to do every night."
Matthias Tass leads Saint Mary's in scoring (12.8) and rebounding (6.2). He had just six points against San Diego while playing 20 minutes due to the blowout margin.
In fact, Johnson was the lone Gaels' starter to play more than 22 minutes.
Gonzaga also was able to rest some key players due to its latest romp. Timme played a team-high 29 minutes while freshman phenom Chet Holmgren played just 23.
Rasir Bolton led the Bulldogs with a season-best 20 points and knocked down four 3-pointers. Timme posted his third double-double of the season with 13 points and 10 rebounds. He leads Gonzaga with a 17.4 scoring average.
"Rasir was terrific," Bulldogs coach Mark Few said. "Drew was really active and delivering early. ... We had an intensity about us."
Holmgren had 14 points after scoring at least 20 in four of the previous five games.
Gonzaga went 3-0 against Saint Mary's last season and has won six straight meetings and 13 of the past 15. It's the first of two meetings this season; the teams will square off again on Feb. 26.
--Field Level Media