Sweet 16 notebook: Creighton’s Trey Alexander impressed with Gonzaga’s Ryan Nembhard while watching ex-teammate from afar

DETROIT – Ryan Nembhard and Trey Alexander are no longer communicating offensive play calls and defensive switches to one another, but the former Creighton Bluejays teammates still communicate on a frequent basis.

That didn’t change when both arrived in the same city on Thursday ahead of their respective Sweet 16 matchups.

Nembhard has led Gonzaga back to the program’s ninth consecutive Sweet 16 during his first year with the Bulldogs since transferring from Creighton last offseason. Without Nembhard in the Bluejays’ backcourt, Alexander, an All-Big East second-team guard, has helped Greg McDermott’s team return to its second consecutive Sweet 16.

If Nembhard’s fifth-seeded Gonzaga team springs an upset of top-seeded Purdue and Alexander’s third-seeded Creighton squad can beat second-seeded Tennessee, the former teammates and close friends would play each other in the Elite Eight on Sunday.

“We were texting in the morning talking about what hotel they were in and things like that,” Alexander said on Thursday. “I’m excited to be able to see him and see him play. Obviously, they’re going to be playing before us, but I’m happy for him and I hope we get to see each other in the next round.”

Alexander and Nembhard have both been offensive catalysts for their teams the first two games of the NCAA Tournament.

The Creighton guard posted 20 points, seven rebounds and five assists in the team’s 86-73 double-overtime victory over Oregon in the Round of 32 after he scored 19 points and grabbed five rebounds in an opening-round win against Akron.

Nembhard didn’t reach double figures in either of Gonzaga’s first two NCAA games, largely because he was too busy setting up his teammates. The junior point guard had eight points and nine assists during an 86-65 win over McNeese State, then matched his career high with 12 assists in an 89-68 win over Kansas while scoring eight points and totaling five rebounds.

“He’s been great, obviously, their last game he had 12 assists and only shot the ball five times,” Alexander said of Nembhard. “That’s just the type of dynamic player he is. He’s able to control the game when he’s not even scoring, so for him to do something like that it just goes to show how much he means to a team and how much he can control the game at will.”

Nembhard, who attracted a swarm of Omaha, Nebraska-based reporters when he sat down inside Gonzaga’s locker room during a media availability, wasn’t ready to speculate about a potential matchup with his old school, but he was more than happy to discuss the nature of his relationship with the Bluejays’ junior shooting guard.

“He’s one of my best friends,” Nembhard said about Alexander, according to WOWT 6 News in Omaha. “We’re always on FaceTime, we’re always chopping it up. He’s going to be my good friend forever. I love that guy.”

Sweetest 16?

Joe and AJ Few didn’t take long to give an answer when asked how many NCAA Tournaments they’ve attended.

“Just count your age,” said Joe, a redshirt sophomore walk-on for the Zags.

With the exception of 2020, when there was no NCAA Tournament due to COVID-19, Gonzaga coach Mark Few’s sons estimated they’ve attended the Big Dance in some capacity nearly every year since they were 3 years old. In other words, anywhere from 18 to 20 times.

The Few brothers know as well as anyone some NCAA Tournament runs feel more satisfying than others. This one included.

Gonzaga was on the wrong side of the bubble after the Bulldogs lost four of eight games during one midseason stretch, then absorbed a Feb. 3 home loss to Saint Mary’s, placing them even further outside the NCAA Tournament picture.

“They were saying we weren’t going to make the tournament, we’ve fallen off, we don’t recruit the same, all that,” said AJ Few, a student manager for the Zags. “So to be here almost feels like you’re always playing with house money. Whereas the stretch when we were always No. 1 seed, you felt that pressure. Nobody thinks we’re going to win Friday, so it feels the same.”

Joe and AJ are plugged in to social media and tend to see or hear most of the commentary and projections involving Gonzaga, but their father is mostly oblivious to those things, especially if they appear on platforms like Instagram and X.

“There’s no chance he knows how to work any social media platforms,” Joe said.

“He’s really off social media,” AJ added.

“If he’s on the ESPN app, which he’ll do occasionally, he’ll see,” Joe said. “He has no chance of getting on (X).”

Made for the silver screen?

College basketball fans who’ve spent any amount of time watching this year’s NCAA Tournament have likely seen the popular AT&T commercial starring former Gonzaga standout Chet Holmgren and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Holmgren’s teammate with the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The ad features Holmgren and Gilgeous-Alexander singing to a rendition of Christina Aguilera’s hit song, “What a Girl Wants.”

Both wearing back leather jackets, the NBA teammates are pictured walking down a flight of stairs and humming the altered lyrics to Aguilera’s song: “And I’m thanking you for knowing exactly what a pro wants, what a pro needs, whatever makes me happy sets me free.”

Social media reviews of the commercial have suggested Holmgren and Gilgeous-Alexander stick to their daytime jobs – scoring baskets and making highlight plays for the 50-win Thunder.

Current Gonzaga players weren’t as critical of their ex-teammate’s acting chops.

“I feel like I’ve seen it like 200 times. I didn’t think it was too bad. People were roasting him?” Watson said. “I didn’t think it was too bad. I don’t know, it’s pretty funny.”

“I liked it a lot, I thought he didn’t hit the notes that good but that’s to be expected out of him,” Joe Few said. “I didn’t really peg him as that good of a singer, but I thought the acting was pretty good.

“It’s kind of like Anton’s (with Northern Quest Resort & Casino), where the funny part is they’re not that good at acting. At least that’s what I think it’s supposed to be.”

How does Holmgren’s commercial compare to those that Watson and former Gonzaga star Drew Timme acted in, as part of college name, image and likenesss deals. Joe Few resorted to a game of “start, bench, cut” to rank his teammates.

“I’m going to have to start Drew, because I like some of the ones he had,” Few said. “He had a lot of them. Then I’m going to bench (Watson) and I’m going to cut Chet. But I still liked it, I still liked all of them. I like seeing it.”

Getting tested

Caleb Furst was getting ready for a few different tests inside top-seeded Purdue’s locker room on Thursday afternoon.

Furst things Furst: Purdue’s Sweet 16 matchup with fifth-seeded Gonzaga on Friday.

Also in the back of Furst’s mind? A genetics exam the junior will take on Tuesday once the Boilermakers return to classes in West Lafayette, Indiana.

A handful of reporters stopped by Furst’s locker room in Detroit on Friday, but in between questions about Purdue, Gonzaga and Friday’s game, the 6-10, 225-pounder was chipping away at a homework assignment for his genetics class.

With a Macbook Pro on his lap and a college ruled notebook sitting on the laptop, Furst was jotting down notes whenever he had a free moment between interview questions.

“We have a lot of free time now, so it’s just about making the most of that free time and stuff,” said Furst, who’s majoring in biomedical health sciences.

Furst is hoping the Boilermakers can pass Friday’s test against Gonzaga, but if nothing else, he’ll return to campus with an excellent grade in the genetics course.

“ ’A’ so far, so hoping we can keep it up,” he said.