USF’s big test with Gonzaga up next
Using Gonzaga as a measuring stick is probably unfair to the rest of the West Coast Conference. The fifth-ranked Bulldogs long ago ceased being a mid-major but are simply a national powerhouse.
Ask Santa Clara, which took a six-game win streak to Spokane, Washington, on Saturday, and lost 91-48.
Next up on Saturday is USF, which is assembling potentially its best season since shuttering its program in 1982, then bringing it back three years later. The Dons are 14-2, with wins over both of the Bay Area’s Pac-12 schools, Cal and Stanford.
They opened the WCC with a pair of victories last week, starting with a 76-72 victory over fast-improving Saint Mary’s, which two days later crushed BYU by 22 points.
USF then trekked to Pepperdine, which held a two-point lead before Frankie Ferrari buried a 3-pointer with 26 seconds left, and Jamaree Bouyea iced a 72-69 win with a steal and two free throws.
Gonzaga will arrive at War Memorial Gym for the 7 p.m. matchup fully healthy. The Bulldogs (142, 1-0) played their first 15 games without 6-foot10 French forward Killian Tillie, who was MVP of the WCC tournament a year ago when he merely made 13 of 14 shots from beyond the 3-point arc.
Tillie’s injured ankle is healed, and he joins a roster that includes projected NBA lottery pick Rui Hachimura (21.4 points per game), San Jose State
transfer Brandon Clarke (17.0 points, 8.1 rebounds, 3.3 blocks) and point guard Josh Perkins (10.4 points, 6.9 assists), who has started 124 games for the Zags and will be unfazed by whatever ruckus USF fans generate.
The Dons have lost 14 straight to Gonzaga, which has dropped just one regular-season WCC road game (at Saint Mary’s in 2015-16) the past four seasons.
Yep, a tough game for the Dons. And a marvelous opportunity. ROAD-TESTED >> The fifthranked Stanford women (12-1, 2-0) — the Bay Area’s best team — hit the road this week, starting Friday at No. 19 Arizona State. The Cardinal does not play at either No. 5 Oregon or No. 10 Oregon State, so this could be its toughest Pac-12 game outside Maples Pavilion.
Stanford was just 10-9 in road or neutral games a year ago — including a loss at ASU — but is 5-1 in those settings so far this season.
PAINT PROBLEMS >> Cal’s men take a 5-9 record into their Pac-12 home opener tonight against Arizona State because they can’t stop anyone. Cal ranks 321st nationally on defense, allowing 79.6 points per game. And it’s getting worse. The Bears have surrendered an average of
more than 87 points per game the past five outings.
The Bears collected 17 steals at UCLA — their most ever in a conference game — and still the Bruins scored 98 points.
Undersized and inexperienced, the Bears saw USC and UCLA score a combined 86 points in the paint last weekend. In the 3-point era, that’s a lot of scoring near the basket. BAD TIMING >> It’s been a rough road for San Jose State (3-10), loser of its past four games. Now the Spartans must play at Reno today vs. No. 10 Nevada (14-1), talented and motivated after suffering its first setback of the season, an 85-58 loss at New Mexico.
PROUD DAD >> Hall of Famer John Stockton’s best single-season free throw percentage in the NBA was 86.3 in 1988-89. His daughter, Gonzaga senior Laura Stockton, leads the WCC this season at 94.1 percent.
BETTER STILL >> Cal sophomore Justice Sueing has made 48 of his past 50 free throws — 96 percent — since the start of the second half against Temple on Nov. 20.
ANOTHER TRIPLE-DOUBLE >> Oregon junior Sabrina Ionescu, a graduate of Miramonte High in the East Bay, added to her NCAA career record (men or women) with her 15th triple-double on Sunday — 17 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists vs. Washington State.