10 Observations from Gonzaga’s championship game loss to North Carolina

I never re-watched this game until last night, and truth be told I wasn’t all that eager for a second viewing. Turns out, I was right not to want to watch this game again because it definitely doesn’t get better after a few years. Knowing what was to come, I couldn’t help but scoff when the broadcasters congratulated the referee crew at the beginning of the game for getting assigned to the biggest event in their sport. Like the South Carolina game, it’s a bit strange to write a column I have already written, but there are a few points that bear repeating:

1. Kennedy Meeks was out of bounds.
2. Zach Collins committed, maybe, one legitimate foul in this game. The refs made sure he didn’t get the opportunity to commit any other legitimate ones.
3. Gonzaga had a couple of opportunities to extend its lead to 10 points in the first half which might have changed the arc of the game. Back-to-back wide open misses at the three-point line from Johnathan Williams and Jordan Mathews were tough to swallow on the second viewing.
4. Joel Berry killed the Zags. He came up with an answer every time UNC needed one.
5. I remember thinking before this game that the Zags would have a hard time with Justin Jackson since they didn’t really have a good cover for him. But if they forced him into a bad game they would be the national champions. That was almost true. They did a great job on Jackson for the first 30-32 minutes, and held him to 0-9 from the three-point line, but failed to capitalize.
6. Nigel Williams-Goss and Josh Perkins were the only Zags who scored in double figures, and Perkins scored all 13 of his points in the first half. Simply put, and refereeing debacle notwithstanding, Gonzaga failed to bury a lot of prime scoring opportunities. My heart especially hurt for Przemek Karnowski, who uncharacteristically struggled and ended up with his worst offensive rating of the season
7. The referee crew had no clue how to officiate big men. Here’s the foul breakdown: Zach Collins (5); Przemek Karnowski (4); Johnathan Williams (4); Kennedy Meeks (4); Tony Bradley (4).
8. Mike Eades—be better.
9. Michael Stephens—be better.
10. Verne Harris—be better.