What a high-profile, and unexpected, way for BYU to tip off West Coast Conference play.
After having their first three WCC games postponed, the Cougars visit No. 1 Gonzaga Thursday (6:30 p.m., MST, ESPN) in a matchup that was set up earlier this week.
Of course, BYU will be a big underdog against the top-ranked Bulldogs.
“We’re so excited to take a huge swing at this and see where we end up,” BYU coach Mark Pope said on his coach’s show on BYUtv Tuesday night.
Thursday’s game is a rescheduling of the Feb. 6 meeting between BYU and Gonzaga at the Kennel and it is not an additional game. What will happen with that Feb. 6 game is yet to be determined.
The WCC, BYU, Gonzaga and ESPN worked together to modify the schedule. BYU was originally set to host Pacific Thursday while the Zags were supposed to play Santa Clara.
Gonzaga (10-0, 1-0) is riding a 14-game win streak, a 44-game home win streak, and a 22-game WCC home win streak. This season, the Zags have wins over No. 3 Iowa, No. 5 Kansas, No. 11 West Virginia and No. 15 Virginia.
Gonzaga became only the third team ever to beat three top-15 opponents in its first four games. It beat San Francisco 85-62 at home in its WCC opener last Saturday.
“They’re remarkable,” Pope said. “It might have been back ... UNLV with Larry Johnson and (coach Jerry) Tarkanian that there’s been a team that’s been so completely, 100% dominant over everybody in college basketball. What they’re doing right now is extraordinary.”
When is the last time Gonzaga lost?
Well, it happened almost a year ago, on Feb. 22 at a sold-out Marriott Center, where the No. 23 Cougars defeated the No. 2 Zags 91-78.
That night, BYU snapped Gonzaga’s 19-game winning streak as well as its 39-game WCC road winning streak.
Meanwhile, no other team in recent years has had as much success at the Kennel as BYU.
The Cougars won there three years in a row from 2015-17. In 2015, BYU ended the Zags’ 22-game win streak and 41-game home win streak. In 2017, the Cougars shocked Gonzaga when it was ranked No. 1 in the country and had a perfect 29-0 record. BYU fell behind 18-2 in the early moments of the game and rallied to win 79-71.
As for this year’s Gonzaga team, some say it might be coach Mark Few’s best. Some national pundits have predicted that the Zags could go undefeated and win their first national championship.
Gonzaga is that good.
The Zags boast a star-studded lineup featuring Corey Kispert, who averages 21.6 points and 4.5 rebounds per game; Drew Timme (18.4 points, 7.3 rebounds), Jalen Suggs (13.9 points, 5.5 rebounds, 5.4 assists); Joel Ayayi (12.2 points, 8.8 rebounds); and Andrew Nembhard (9.8 points, 4.7 assists).
“Anytime you talk about the Zags, they’re incredible in transition. One through five, they can push it off the bounce.” — Mark Pope
“Anytime you talk about the Zags, they’re incredible in transition. One through five, they can push it off the bounce,” Pope said. “This Drew Timme is really incredible because he is a point-center. You hear about point-forwards all the time. But he’s not just pushing in transition one or two or three dribbles. He’s pushing in transition, making one or two moves off the bounce and then throwing backdoor dimes like fully downhill.”
Pope praised Few’s ability to recruit and develop the talent through a pipeline that has flowed to Spokane over the years.
“That’s a credit to their staff, their team, their program and coach Few and everything they’ve done,” Pope said. “They keep bringing in really talented players. What’s amazing is, they have guys that didn’t play as a freshman, redshirted as a sophomore and then they’re an All-American their next season.”
Pope called Suggs, a five-star recruit “probably a top-3 lottery pick” in the NBA draft. Nembhard is a grad transfer from Florida.
The Zags are shooting 55% from the field and they average 95 points per game. They’ve scored at least 85 points in all 10 of their games.
BYU (9-2) has not allowed 80 points to an opponent this season.
The Cougars haven’t played since Dec. 23, an 87-79 win over Weber State. The Cougars have a bye on the schedule Saturday. Their next scheduled game is next Thursday at Saint Mary’s.
For now, BYU is happy to have a game to play.
“I’m super grateful to the Zags. I say that now,” the coach said. “We’ll see how I feel Thursday night after the game. I can’t say enough great things about them.”
Cougars on the air
BYU (9-2, 0-0) at No. 1 Gonzaga (10-0, 1-0)
Thursday, 6:30 p.m. MST
The Kennel
TV: ESPN
Radio: 1160 AM, 102.7 FM