‘Can’t wait to watch it’: MVSU coach George Ivory sizes up Gonzaga-UConn matchup

Mississippi Valley State coach George Ivory purposely assembles a tough nonconference schedule to test his players. There are also financial benefits for his program.

The Delta Devils will play all 13 of their nonconference games on the road, some at the toughest venues in college basketball. Their first three games were against LSU, Oklahoma and Connecticut.

MVSU’s road show took them to Spokane on Monday with No. 10 Gonzaga cruising to a 78-40 victory at the McCarthey Athletic Center.

“We’re probably going to switch it up next year because it’s pretty tough, traveling,” Ivory said. “I try to do it especially with a new team, young guys, going into these great environments and play against great teams and teach them things we have to work on. It’s a learning experience – teaching them how these teams play with intensity, energy and effort. If you see it, it’s a lot different than when I’m saying it them.”

Ivory’s squad lost to UConn 87-53 in mid -November in Hartford, Connecticut. The fifth-ranked Huskies tangle with Gonzaga on Friday at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle.

Asked how MVSU’s game against UConn went, Ivory said, “About the same as against Gonzaga. Well-coached team, great athletes, great basketball players. I think it’s going to be an interesting game. I can’t wait to watch it.”

Ivory didn’t offer a prediction but said “both teams are stacked pretty good. Gonzaga could be a little bit deeper, but both have such good basketball teams. It’s going to be one exciting game.”

Mississippi Valley State made just 32% of its shots but grabbed 14 offensive rebounds in the loss to UConn. The Delta Devils hit just 29% against Gonzaga while collecting 13 offensive boards.

Ivory’s team played 40 minutes of zone defense against the Zags “because we knew we couldn’t match their size in the block and we still didn’t match it in the zone because their guys are such great athletes. I thought we got great positioning. We held them from getting dunks but they’re good players and they just made great shots. I take my hat off to the way they moved and way they played.”

Washington played zone for a short stretch Saturday against Gonzaga, but the Zags haven’t seen a ton of zone defense this season.

Facing a steady diet of zone was new for Gonzaga freshman Dusty Stromer, but not so much for redshirt freshman Braden Huff.

“This guy played zone his entire high school career, I don’t know if you guys knew that,” Stromer said of Huff in post-game interviews.

Huff confirmed that Glenbard West regularly played zone defense en route to winning the Illinois 4A state title his senior season. Huff was named Mr. Basketball in Illinois.

“That’s why (my) defense is a little bit of a work in progress still,” said Huff, who had a team-high 17 points against the Delta Devils. “I kind of know how it feels to be on the other end of (facing a zone). It’s kind of different.”