10 Observations from Gonzaga’s win over San Diego

That was a decent amuse-bouche for the main course on Saturday. Revenge game with the regular season title on the line? Saturday is going to be a good day for the Zags.

1. On the one hand, the Zags shot the ball quite poorly from the three-point line in the first half. You never want that, of course, but Gonzaga is one of the best 3-point shooting teams in the country so it’s not worth getting too hung up on that. On the plus side, the Zags dominated the offensive boards so it’s...fine? Drew Timme, in particular, was a dominant force on the offensive glass as he owned the paint all night long.
2. It has almost been a full season and I still don’t really understand how it came to be that Steve Lavin is the head coach of USD. I think it would be fair to wonder “why?” from both sides when it comes to that union.
3. Drew Timme is the best passer on the team, but Anton Watson might be the second best, and by a healthy margin too.
4. Opposing players should probably just stop trying to attack Hunter Sallis off the bounce. That’s a losing proposition. He’s going to make you feel bad about yourself.
5. Another tough shooting night for Rasir Bolton, but that didn’t stop him from impacting the game. He’s done that a few times this season, and it’s the ultimate mark of a mature player.
6. I thought Julian Strawther might have been keeping the power dry for Saint Mary’s, but he turned up the heat for a quick blast in the middle of the second half just to let the Toreros feel what it’s like to walk on the sun.
7. Imagine getting dominated by someone with Ben Gregg’s haircut. I’d never want to play basketball again.
8. Timme might have broken Gonzaga’s all-time scoring record 10 games ago if he got to finish out blowout wins over the course of his career.
9. What a relief to see Malachi Smith bounce back quickly from his first half ankle injury. Obviously, any injury at this time of year is going to be particularly devastating. Considering the inconsistencies of the backcourt, losing Smith as an option for any amount of time would have placed a lot of pressure on Hickman, Sallis, and Bolton.
10. San Diego shot 52% from the three-point line, and all that earned them was a blowout loss and getting victimized by the Sallis-Colby Brooks connection that I didn’t know was a thing until Thursday night.