Sam Dower led all teams with 22 points and Gerard Coleman added 21 as a big second half surge helped push the Gonzaga Bulldogs past the New Mexico St. Aggies, 80-68, on Saturday night.
Against the frightening height of the Aggies, the Bulldogs more than held their own down in the post, outscoring New Mexico in the pain and outrebounding them as well. Gonzaga finished with a 45-30 edge on the boards, but most importantly attacked the offensive glass with a fever that has been lacking all season. Gonzaga finished with 18 offensive rebounds, their highest total of the season. That translated to 19 must-needed second-chance points.
The most important part about seeing that effort on the glass was that the wealth was spread all over. Drew Barham and Gerard Coleman each finished with three offensive boards, and for a team that will often find itself undersized, they need to play with the energy to get the rebounds. Not all offensive rebounds can be snared from a 7'5 behemoth, but with relentless hustle you'll find the ball in your hands more often then you think.
Here is the game flow for the game, with the game statistically over with a little under two minutes left to play.
And here are the statistics, with one interesting thing I'd like to mention after the blast of numbers.
The plus/minus I threw at the very end of that box score is the total points scored by the team minus the total points allowed by the team while the individual player was on the court. One of the arguments we will be seeing in the next couple of days as Coleman's play forces the issue is whether or not he should start or be the spark off the bench. That argument is for a different post, but having a spark off the bench is an invaluable asset. Drew Barham was also that spark quietly in this game, and is starting to look like a very capable sixth man.
