‘Saved the game for us.’ Expanding on Ismaila Diagne’s defensive impact in Gonzaga’s 95-76 win at Santa Clara

SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Gonzaga came up with one defensive wrinkle and stumbled on another in its effort to stymie hot-shooting Santa Clara in a 95-76 win on Tuesday at the Leavey Center.

The Zags took a long look at their coverages after yielding 103 points on 18 3-pointers in the Jan. 18 loss at McCarthey Athletic Center, making a number of adjustments before a high-stakes rematch in the Silicon Valley.

For long stretches of the first half, it didn’t seem to make a difference whether Gonzaga was defending at a high level or not. Santa Clara capitalized on blown coverages, but the Broncos also connected on highly contested, hand-in-the-face 3-pointers while they sprinted out to a double-digit lead just five minutes into the game.

The Zags made a calculated guess that Santa Clara’s dead-eye shooting wouldn’t continue, at least not at that level for 40 minutes, even after the Broncos set a West Coast Conference record while making 23 of 38 shots from the 3-point line three days earlier in a 109-79 win at Washington State.

“I think we just stuck with it,” GU senior point guard Ryan Nembhard said. “We had a different game plan this time. We wanted to take away the 3s. They started out 8 for 8. They made some tough ones, they made some ones where we messed up some coverages, but I figured if we stuck to the game plan they probably wouldn’t go 20 for 20 in the game, so we stuck with it and I thought second half we were great.

“I think they only had 30 (points) in the second half and they’ve been playing great offense all year, so it’s a great task to keep a team like that down to, what, 70 points.”

The gamble paid off, in large part because of another wrinkle that allowed Gonzaga to maintain defensive pressure on Santa Clara’s 3-point shooters and simultaneously discourage the Broncos from taking close-range shots inside the paint.

Enter Ismaila Diagne.

The 7-foot freshman unlocked a new look for the Zags late in the first half, when starting forward Graham Ike and reserve Braden Huff were tagged for their second and third fouls, respectively, in short succession.

Diagne, who had played 34 total minutes all season before playing 18 on Tuesday, delivered game-changing plays at both ends of the floor. He made the biggest impact on the defensive end, where his length stifled Santa Clara down low, consequently allowing Gonzaga to defend aggressively on the 3-point line.

“We were just able to change our coverage, which means you don’t have to help,” Gonzaga coach Mark Few said. “We were able to shut down, stay on the 3-point shooters, which totally changes your coverage. Then you’ll kind of live with some tough 2s and he protects the rim better than both our other guys do.”

Diagne said he wasn’t too rattled playing meaningful rotation minutes for the first time as a Division I player. The Senegal native has prior experience with Real Madrid’s U-18 and senior teams, competing in front of passionate European crowds and playing in emotional rivalry games like El Clasico, the annual battle between Madrid and Spanish nemesis FC Barcelona.

“El Clasico, Real Madrid is a big game every year,” Diagne said. “I was more nervous that game, so now it’s like I’m used to it, so I’m ready every time and I get in and helping the team win.”

Diagne’s first college season hasn’t been short on turbulence. Buried behind Ike and Huff in GU’s frontcourt rotation, Diagne also suffered an MCL injury that sidelined him for two months, missed one game with a concussion and another due to illness.

“He’s always given us a great rim protector. He’s just had the knee thing and then he had a concussion and then he was sick,” Few said. “Yeah, and he’s playing behind two really good guys at his position, but boy, he sure showed up big tonight and saved the game for us.”

The freshman had nine points on 4-of-4 shooting from the field, four rebounds, one block and one steal in a season-high 18 minutes. That’s not to mention other stats that went uncharted. Diagne altered four or five Santa Clara shots, dove for loose balls and forced a turnover in the second half, knocking the ball off Camaron Tongue’s leg out of bounds.

“He’s ready, man,” Ike said. “He’s been playing in Real Madrid against grown men, almost for like four, five years now. So he’s ready for this. He’s built for this.”

Diagne was the source of many Santa Clara headaches as the Broncos finished 3 of 17 from the 3-point line after opening 8 of 8. Santa Clara had a grim night from inside the arc, making just 11 of 30 (36%) attempts, and the Broncos were just 12 of 36 from the field after Diagne subbed in at the 6:28 mark of the first half.

“I thought he was just tremendous, really changed the game,” Broncos coach Herb Sendek said. “Did a phenomenal job on the defensive end of the floor, terrific rim protection. I thought he was just outstanding for them.”

Ike undecided on future

Ike’s decision not to participate in Senior Night festivities on Saturday not surprisingly sparked discourse around Gonzaga fan and social media circles.

The team’s leading scorer, who’s eligible to return for one final college season, indicated he hasn’t given much thought to the future and plans to make that call later.

“I’m not even focused on none of that right now,” Ike said after scoring 24 points on Tuesday. “We’re focused on winning games right now. That’s our biggest focus, biggest goal. That has nothing to do with winning basketball right now. That’s where we’re at.”

Ike, listed as a senior on Gonzaga’s roster, is eligible to return due to playing in the COVID-19-impacted 2020-21 season and missing the 2022-23 season at Wyoming with an injury.