‘A lot of emotion.’ LMU’s Dominick Harris struggles to find rhythm in bittersweet return to Gonzaga

Dominick Harris, in his own words, wanted to lean on his Loyola Marymount teammates and coaches to help settle the emotions that would inherently come with a long-awaited return to Gonzaga.

Easy in theory, sure, but much harder once Tuesday night rolled around.

Harris, who came back to the McCarthey Athletic Center wearing the uniform of a West Coast Conference rival, was greeted by former Gonzaga teammates practically as soon as he stepped onto the court approximately 80 minutes before tipoff.

It started with a hug from Ben Gregg, followed by a signature handshake with Nolan Hickman. Two minutes before tip, Harris was getting some final shots up when he shared a longer embrace with Mark Few, the coach who started recruiting him six or seven years ago out of Pacifica Christian High School in Southern California.

Harris’ parents, Shawn and Neki, exchanged pleasantries with Hickman, Joe Few, Anton Watson and assistant Brian Michaelson, before mingling with dozens of Gonzaga fans before, during and after Tuesday’s game.

When Harris was announced in LMU’s starting lineup, Gonzaga’s Kennel Club greeted the guard with a mix of cheers and boos. One student held up a sign that read, “Dom is Free” – a humorous play off the “Free Dom” sign that occasionally propped up at home games while Harris was on GU’s roster.

Harris had to deal with all that, then play a high-stakes college basketball game against a team that knows him better than any other in the country.

“It was definitely a lot of emotion,” Harris said. “Just tried to simmer myself down and stay within the game, just listen to my coaches and teammates and the game plan going into it. It’s always fun to be back here and it was fun to see the guys. I just listened to the game plan and tried not to think about it too much.”

Harris, who came in as LMU’s top scorer averaging 14.7 points per game and one of the WCC’s most accurate 3-point shooters at 42.7%, was held in check during Gonzaga’s 92-58 win over LMU.

Things started out bleakly for the junior guard and didn’t get much better throughout the evening. On LMU’s second offensive possession, Harris had a layup attempt blocked by Hickman. Over the next 8 minutes, the guard missed another shot – this time from the 3-point line – and was credited for three turnovers before subbing out near the 12-minute mark.

Harris had two more shots blocked – one by Watson, another by Dusty Stromer – and only found his rhythm once the Zags had built a 30-plus-point cushion. After a scoreless first half, the guard finished with 11 points on 4-of-13 shooting from the field and 2 of 4 from the 3-point line to go with four turnovers and three rebounds.

Harris’ four turnovers were part of a larger problem for LMU. The Lions committed 20 as a team and 14 in the first half.

“We were playing a little too fast, I would say,” Harris said. We’ve just got to play together more. We work on it every day, so we’re just going to work for the games next Wednesday and Saturday. So continue to work hard and try to get better. We still think we can win everything, so there’s no doubts about it. Just take it on the chin and try to get better.”

A former four-star prospect, Harris signed at Gonzaga as part of the Bulldogs’ heralded “tricky trio” recruiting class, which also included close friends and eventual first-round NBA draft picks Jalen Suggs and Julian Strawther.

Harris faced a series of obstacles that limited opportunities to see the court during his time at Gonzaga. As a freshman, he struggled to crack a talented guard rotation that included Suggs, Corey Kispert, Joel Ayayi and Andrew Nembhard, playing only spot minutes for Gonzaga’s national runner-up team.

A foot injury forced Harris to miss his sophomore season, setting his development behind a full year. By the time he returned to the court in 2022-23, he was vying for minutes with another deep group of backcourt players, including Hickman, Rasir Bolton, Malachi Smith and Hunter Sallis.

“I think it’s all about timing,” Shawn Harris said. “It’s unfortunate, nobody could predict Dom getting injured. It was a freak injury, but it happened. It had an 18-month timetable. He beat that timetable, but in college sports your best ability is availability. There’s no hard feelings or anything, I think it was just timing.”

Harris entered the transfer portal in April and quickly found a home at LMU, where he’s carved out a much bigger role, starting his past 10 games after coming off the bench the first 11.

“I’m super happy for him,” Few said. “He has a great role down there, he’s getting a lot of shots and taking great advantage of it. Again, some of this is the growing process, right, it takes awhile. I think he’s really hit his stride and I told him that before the game.”

Harris, who’s averaging 29.1 minutes per game after playing 7.2 in 2020-21 and 4.4 in 2022-23, said he hasn’t second-guessed his decision.

“I’ve met a lot of new people. We benefit from each other,” Harris said. “Just learning every day, just learning different things every day. I’m appreciative of the relationships I’ve established, to be honest. Also, the opportunity I’ve got. I feel like it’s a great opportunity. It’s all (been) good and it’s all love.”

Harris and LMU will get another shot at the Zags when the teams meet for the second time, on Feb. 15 in Los Angeles.

“I talked to him before the game,” Gregg said. “I’m glad he’s doing well. We were really tight last year. It’s just nice to see him succeed. I talked to his parents for a little bit. It was great seeing them. They’re big Gonzaga supporters, always will be and they’ll always be part of our family.”