Starting Thursday at San Diego, No. 2 Gonzaga prepares for critical road swing

At different points this season, Gonzaga has occupied the top spot in the AP and Coaches’ polls. As of Wednesday, the Bulldogs were simultaneously holding the No. 1 position in the NCAA’s NET rankings and KenPom. They’re leading all Division I teams in offensive output, at 90.6 points per game, and recently appeared on a BetOnline.ag odds sheet as a slight betting favorite to win the national title.

Inadvertently, the Bulldogs have climbed to the top of another list this season.

Second-ranked Gonzaga (17-2, 6-0) is preparing for just its second true road game of the season when it visits upstart San Diego (13-9, 6-3) for a 6 p.m. tipoff at Jenny Craig Pavilion. The game will be televised on ESPN2.

Among the 358 teams that play Division I college basketball, Gonzaga has played the fewest number of road games. West Coast Conference rival San Francisco and Ole Miss check in at No. 2 on that list, having played three road games each. Since Gonzaga began playing a DI schedule in 1958-59, the Bulldogs have never entered February having played just one road game.

It’s partially due to circumstance. Gonzaga’s nonconference schedule was arranged in a way that sent the Bulldogs outside of Spokane on three occasions, but only for neutral-site games against UCLA, Central Michigan, Duke, Alabama and Texas Tech. GU was supposed to play at USD and Loyola Marymount to open the WCC slate, but the Zags incurred a COVID-19 outbreak that forced both games to be postponed. Another road game, at Pacific, was also postponed due to COVID-19.

It means the final stretch of Gonzaga’s WCC slate is backloaded with road tests as the Bulldogs play three of their next five games, and five of their final eight, away from McCarthey Athletic Center.

The Zags have been dominating WCC opponents, winning games by an average margin of 29 points, but the upcoming stretch is nonetheless a critical one for a team that’s played in front of one road crowd, at Santa Clara, albeit it was hardly a hostile one with the Broncos limiting capacity to 25%.

No such restrictions exist at USD and the Toreros’ recent form, coupled with the Beatles-like appeal Gonzaga brings into most WCC arenas – this season especially with nationally prominent headliners such as Drew Timme and Chet Holmgren – could attract a capacity crowd to Thursday’s game. Things won’t get any easier 48 hours later when the Bulldogs play revenge-driven BYU at the Marriott Center in another nationally televised game.

“Sam (Scholl) has done a nice job, they’ve turned it,” Gonzaga coach Mark Few said of his San Diego counterpart. “They have some big, physical inside guys. They’re inching in to that 4-5 spot. This is going to be a big road trip for us, obviously that one I expect a real physical game and they still have (Joey) Calcaterra on the perimeter and then obviously short prep to go to Provo. I’m sure that will be in front of 20,000. That’ll be quite an environment.”

Thursday’s game pits the WCC’s only six-win teams against one other, though San Diego’s conference mark should probably come with a disclaimer.

All of the Toreros’ WCC wins have come against teams that occupy the bottom four spots in the standings. Meanwhile, USD is 0-3 against teams in the top six and sits at just No. 163 in KenPom.

Scholl’s tenure at San Diego has in many ways been an unpredictable roller coaster. The Toreros compiled a 21-15 record in his first season, followed by 9-23 and 3-11 marks the next two years. Blending returners with transfers, he’s restored faith this season, winning more games than he did the past two years combined while giving USD a chance at its highest win total in WCC play since the Toreros won 11 games in 2007-08.

“They’ve been playing good around the WCC, it’ll definitely be a good game,” Gonzaga’s Anton Watson said. “We’re definitely going to get their best. We’ll have to prepare for that.”

The Toreros have been a defensive-minded team in 2021-21, allowing 63.8 points per game – second only to Saint Mary’s in the WCC and tied for No. 46 in the country. They’ve also shown a knack for playing in tight games, with seven of their last eight decided by eight points or fewer, including Saturday’s 69-65 win over LMU.

“We’re just so proud of this group, their resiliency, their toughness, their togetherness, how badly they want to fulfill our purpose of winning,” Scholl told the San Diego Union-Tribune .

“It’s so much fun to see them not panic, never fold, keep fighting. I can’t say enough good things about who these guys are.”

Transfers have accounted for more than 50% of USD’s scoring, with former St. John’s reserve Marcellus Earlington averaging a team-high 13.5 points playing a hybrid guard/forward position. Denver transfer Jase Townsend is averaging 10.7 ppg while Calcaterra, a fifth-year senior, is third at 9.3 ppg. The Zags will also have to account for 6-foot-10 Pitt transfer Terrell Brown, who averages 9.0 points and 7.1 rebounds.

“They gave us some good games last year,” Bulldogs point guard Andrew Nembhard said. “Definitely a team we’re going to have to lock in on.”