Gonzaga tips off in style
Gonzaga University got most of what it wanted out of Friday night’s basketball exhibition against Emporia State.
Along with a lopsided 114-86 win, the Bulldogs got a chance to shake off the competitive cobwebs, expose a few early season warts and unofficially christen the McCarthey Athletic Center, their new 6,000-seat arena, in grand style.
Sophomore forward Sean Mallon, one of five Zags to score in double figures, finished with a game-high 28 points and nine rebounds, and senior frontliner Ronny Turiaf added 23 points and seven boards as GU blew the Hornets away early, much to the delight of the 5,941 in attendance.
Turiaf, GU’s leading scorer last season, left the game limping badly after locking up with Emporia’s Shawn Herrman and tumbling awkwardly to floor while battling for a loose ball early in the second half. Turiaf did not return, but he was walking much better after the game and Bulldogs coach Mark Few said he expected his senior co-captain to be fine.
Along with the big offensive efforts from Mallon and Turiaf, GU also got 18 points, eight assists and seven rebounds sophomore Adam Morrison, 16 points from first-year junior transfer Nathan Doudney and 13 points from and seven assists from sophomore point guard Derek Raivio.
“I thought we came out with some energy and some fire, and we were very efficient on offense,” Few said, pointing to his team’s 32 assists on 42 field goals.
The Bulldogs shot 66.7 percent (24-36) in amassing a 67-36 halftime lead and then buried their first seven shots of the second half before easing off the gas.
Doudney, who redshirted last season after transferring from Texas Tech, showed no ill effects from his prolonged layoff. The 6-4 shooting guard from Rockwall, Texas, made the first four shots he tried – all 3-pointers – and finished 5 for 7 from the field.
“It felt good to get out there again and get going,” he said. “It was just a matter of slowing down and getting back into the flow of the game. I did a good job of that tonight, I think, but at the first of the year I was moving too fast and rushing things, and Coach has been talking to me about it.”
Despite his Bulldogs’ 60 percent shooting and dominance on the offensive end of the floor, Few admitted he has some concerns with his team’s defensive effort – particularly on the perimeter, where the Hornets knocked down 15 of 27 3-point attempts after abandoning all hope of competing inside.
“We definitely need to get better,” he said. “But we’re not going to play many teams that have five guards, where our 6-10 center has to chase a 6-2 shooter around. That (3-point percentage) is a little deceiving, but we’re obviously not even close to where we need to be defensively.”
Emporia State coach David Moe, like Few, was impressed with Gonzaga’s offensive execution.
“I thought they were terrific,” he said of the Bulldogs. “I hope they were that good and we weren’t atrocious. I’m not sure which way to lean on that one.”
Moe also gave the Zags’ defense the benefit of the doubt.
“When we move and cut, it’s hard for them to match up with our little guys, which is why we were able to get some good looks,” he explained.
Gonzaga fans not only got a feel for their new arena, but they to see 11 different Bulldogs in action. One they did not see, however, was junior transfer J.P. Batista, a promising 6-foot-9, 269-pound center, who has yet to have his eligibility certified by the NCAA.
GU athletic director Mark Roth issued a written statement prior to the game, saying the university is “confident the situation will be resolved soon.”