No. 14 Gonzaga and LSU will put unbeaten records on the line as they meet Saturday in Spokane, Wash., in the toughest test for each team so far this season.
LSU coach Will Wade said he hopes the 2,300-mile trip to the Pacific Northwest will be worth the $30,000 guarantee his team received to play just off the Gonzaga campus at Spokane’s Numerica Veterans Arena.
“We’re getting money for our NIL to go up there, so the check ain’t going to bounce,” Wade said. “That may be the best part of the trip if we don’t play any better than we’ve been playing.
“I think I was the only one dumb enough to go up there and play them. It’s going to be one of the biggest challenges of our entire season.”
Gonzaga (2-0), which makes a habit of playing a difficult nonconference schedule to better prepare for what has become an annual appearance in the NCAA Tournament, already has a victory over Purdue at Las Vegas and another at home against New Mexico State.
The Bulldogs are led by shooting guard Davis Fogle, the reigning Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week. Fogle scored a career-high 22 points against Purdue and matched that in a 109-68 victory over New Mexico State in the home opener last Saturday.
LSU (3-0) has hammered its first three outclassed opponents, beating mid-majors LSU New Orleans, Texas Southern and Louisiana Tech by at least 40 points apiece.
The replenished Tigers, who loaded up in the transfer portal, have six players scoring in double figures. Former New Mexico and UCLA guard Donovan Dent is averaging 13.7 points, 8.3 assists and 3.3 steals. Croatian 7-foot freshman Michael Ruzic is averaging 15.7 points and 7.3 rebounds off the bench.
“He’s got a heck of a roster now,” Few said of Wade. “They might not be as talented as Duke, but it’s probably the second-most talented roster, maybe, in college basketball. I don’t think everybody knows the level of play of the kids from the international ranks.”
Dent and fellow UCLA transfer Skyy Clark gained a fifth year of eligibility via a California court ruling regarding players in the class of 2022.
Gonzaga learned Thursday that 6-foot-11 forward Chauncey Wiggins was granted an injunction to join the program as a transfer from Florida State, where he averaged 13.3 points last season.
Both teams are in the top 30 in Division I in field-goal percentage. The Bulldogs are shooting 53.0% from the floor, 47.5% from 3-point range. Fogle, fifth-year Florida transfer Xaivian Lee and Houston transfer Isiah Harwell have made four 3-pointers apiece. Harwell had 22 points against New Mexico State.
“We have so many guys who are super-talented, can score the ball and know how to play the game,” Fogle said. “They know how to make the right reads.”
LSU is shooting 54.6% from the floor, led by Ruzic (77.8%), Kentucky transfer Mo Dioubate (66.7%) and freshman Saliou Niang (71.4%).
Gonzaga’s frontline features 6-10 Braden Huff (15.0 points per game) and 7-1 Arizona State transfer Massamba Diop (9.5).
“Obviously that team has a lot of talent,” Huff said of LSU. “They play really aggressive. It’s going to be a fun challenge for us.”
Gonzaga has committed only eight turnovers per game and is ranked seventh in offensive efficiency rating by KenPom, while LSU is 27th.
“They like to get out and run,” Wade said. “They’re elite. They’re one of the best teams in the country. We’re going to have to play really clean basketball up there.”
–Field Level Media
