Gonzaga anticipating ‘fired up’ Washington State before first trip to Pullman in over 9 years
PULLMAN – Nolan Hickman scored a ticket the last time Washington State filled up Beasley Coliseum, making a weekend getaway to Pullman during his junior season at Eastside Catholic High School in Seattle for a Pac-12 game against Oregon State on Jan. 18, 2020.
Klay Thompson was back in Pullman that day for his jersey retirement ceremony, accompanied by an entourage of high-profile guests that included Golden State Warriors teammate Steph Curry and father Mychal, a former No. 1 overall NBA draft pick. WSU reported an official attendance figure of 10,830, outfitting every fan in commemorative crimson and white “No. 1” T-shirts.
The Cougars haven’t drawn a crowd or created an environment like that since, but Hickman and his Gonzaga teammates have played in front of a handful over the years.
The Zags successfully navigated the hostility and noise of 20,186 fans at historic Rupp Arena last February, edging Kentucky 89-85 for an important Quad 1 victory that boosted their NCAA Tournament resume.
San Diego State drew 12,414 fans at Viejas Arena earlier this season for Gonzaga’s mid-November visit. The Zags never flinched, leading wire to wire in an 80-67 victory.
Hickman and senior forward Ben Gregg have prevailed in front of 19,000 fans at BYU’s Marriott Center; starting guards Ryan Nembhard and Khalif Battle have their own experiences with big arenas and hostile crowds from their days in the Big East and SEC.
Gonzaga players will draw on all of those experiences when the Zags (20-7, 11-3) and Cougars (16-11, 6-8) tip off Wednesday at Beasley Coliseum. WSU is averaging roughly 3,600 fans at home games this season, but Gonzaga’s first visit since Dec. 2015 is expected to bring the school’s first sellout crowd in 15 years. During Thompson’s junior season, 11,671 fans attended a 63-58 loss to Kansas State.
“It’s dope, man,” Hickman said. “I’m ready for it.”
The Zags and Cougars have veered in different directions since GU outlasted WSU for an 88-75 victory last month at McCarthey Athletic Center.
Gonzaga’s past nine games have resulted in six wins and three losses. The Zags have won six of their past seven games, picking up a crucial 88-77 victory over San Francisco last Thursday to overtake the Dons for second place in the WCC standings.
Flip Gonzaga’s record over the last nine games and you’ll come up with WSU’s. The Cougars rebounded from their GU loss with consecutive wins, but proceeded to lose five straight games and six of their next seven for a 3-8 record over the past 11 games
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Gonzaga coach Mark Few understands the influence of a strong home crowd, perhaps better than anybody in college basketball while winning more than 93% of his home games since the Kennel opened in 2004. Few expects Wednesday’s rivalry game will give the Zags a sense of what they might experience during a late-season WCC gantlet that features games against first-place Saint Mary’s, fourth-place Santa Clara and third-place San Francisco.
“When that schedule came out, I was like, ‘Whoa that’s going to be a tough ending to this thing.’ Lo and behold, it’s happening,” Few said. “We’re finishing up against probably four of the best teams in the league or close to it. Definitely three of the best teams, then obviously Washington State’s going to be a handful down there. So I’m sure they’ll have a great crowd and be fired up.
“We had a good battle with them here in Spokane, so we just need to take them one at a time and, hopefully, our defense is now to the point where we can count on it traveling.”
Gonzaga’s defense was shaky, yielding 53.8% shooting from the field when the teams last met, and only got worse in losses to Oregon State and Santa Clara. The Zags have posted a number of positive data points since then, holding six of their past seven opponents under 70 points.
WSU’s defense has been trending the wrong way for weeks and the Cougars have slipped to eighth in the WCC in that category, allowing 77.9 ppg. The Zags did damage in the paint, with 31 combined points from Graham Ike and Braden Huff, and also made 10 3-pointers in the previous game.
“Defensively, we have to win the paint game and that looks like guarding the post and having a couple looks at the post,” WSU coach David Riley said. “Then keeping them out of transition.”
Riley has another offensive option at his disposal with guard Isaiah Watts, who missed last month’s game with a hand injury. Watts, a Seattle native and former Seattle Prep standout who competed against Hickman in the Metro League, is averaging 13 ppg in his past three games with 11 made 3-pointers in his past five.
“I played against him growing up and everything, so I know of him, for sure,” Hickman said of Watts. “He brings a lot of scoring to the team, so I think him being back it’ll be good for WSU. But yeah, I don’t think it’ll really matter with how we’re playing right now.”