MBB opens Battle 4 Atlantis with West Virginia

On November 28, 2024By Littum

THE OPENING TIP
– Gonzaga opens the 2024 Bad Boy Mowers Battle 4 Atlantis against West Virginia at Imperial Arena in Paradise Island, Bahamas, Wednesday at 7 p.m. 11:30 Pacific Time.
– In their last match, Graham Ike and Khalif fight each had 15 points, as no. 3 Bulldogs routed Long Beach State 84-41. Ryan Nembhardt added 10 points and seven assists. GU’s bench gave 32 points, including 12 from Braden Huff and 10 off Dusty Stromer. LBSU was held to 31.5 percent shooting from the field.
– The Bulldogs went 27-of-31 from the free throw line in the win at San Diego State. The last time Gonzaga shot 85 percent with 30 or more free throw attempts was against Santa Clara on Jan. 16, 2020. The last time GU did that on the road was at Santa Clara on Jan. 5, 2013.
– The Zags haven’t trailed since the 7:21 mark of the second half against Arizona State, 69-67, on Nov. 10. GU hasn’t trailed in the final 126 minutes and 27 seconds of game action.
– Ryan Nembhardt 47 assists is tied with Purdue’s Braden Smith for most in the nation through five games. Nembhard’s 9.4 assists per game are third in the nation. The senior has six turnovers. His 7.83 assist-to-turnover ratio is 10th in the nation.

SCOUT The mountain people
– West Virginia is off to a 3-1 start to its season, winning three home games and falling at Pittsburgh.
– In its last game, WVU cruised to an 86-43 victory over Iona on Wednesday. Four Mountaineers finished in double figures in scoring led by Javon Small’s 23 points. He made five threes and added five assists and four steals. Amani Hansberry had 10 points and nine rebounds. WVU made 15-of-31 from three-point range. The Mountaineers forced 21 turnovers and limited Iona to 23.7 percent shooting from the field.
– Small is averaging a team-best 15.5 points per game. game, along with 4 assists and three steals per play out.
– Tucker DeVries adds 13.5 points and Jonathan Powell chips in 12 points per game.
– West Virginia begins year one under new head coach Darian DeVries, who led Drake to six consecutive 20-win seasons. The Mountaineers were 9-23 last season, including 4-14 in the Big 12 Conference, but bring an almost entirely new roster under DeVries.

SERIES INFO
– Gonzaga is 5-0 all-time against WVU.
– In the last meeting, the then no. 1 GU to an 87-82 over no. 11 Mountaineers in the 2020 Jimmy V Classic in Indianapolis.
– In 2017, the Bulldogs won a thrilling Sweet 16 matchup with WVU in San Jose, Calif., in 2017. GU’s Jordan Mathews hit the go-ahead 3-pointer with under a minute left, and top-seeded Gonzaga survived to beat No. 4 seed West Virginia 61-58 to advance to the West Regional final and eventually the program’s first final. Four.
– The Zags won the first-ever meeting, 77-54, in the second round of the 2012 NCAA Tournament in Pittsburgh, Pa. The seventh-seeded Zags cruised to victory over 10th-seeded WVU behind 56 percent shooting from the field (63.6% in the second half).
– Gonzaga cruised to an 84-50 home victory in the second meeting on November 12, 2012.
– The following season, GU visited West Virginia and beat the Mountaineers, 80-76, on December 10, 2013.
– The Bulldogs have two wins over Big 12 Conference members this season, Baylor and Arizona State. Gonzaga has won its last four games against current members of the Big 12, and 15 of the last 17. Both setbacks were to Baylor in 2021 and 2023.

UP NEXT
– With a win, Gonzaga would face the winner of the No. 16 of Indiana and Louisville in the semifinals Thursday at 9 Pacific Time on ESPN.
– If GU falls, it will face the non-advancing team between Indiana and Louisville on Thursday at 11:30 a.m. Pacific Time on ESPN2.

THANK YOU FOR THESE EVENTS
– Gonzaga is 46-13 under Mark Few in events during Thanksgiving week and 35-7 in the last 10 Thanksgiving week events.
– Below Mark FewGU has won seven tournaments during Thanksgiving week and played in 11 of the
the 17 tournament championship games.
– Last season at the Maui Invitational, the Bulldogs fell to eventual champion Purdue in the quarterfinals before picking up wins over Syracuse and UCLA.

BACK TO THE BAHAMAS
– Gonzaga will be part of a loaded field in the 2024 Battle 4 Atlantis. The Zags join Arizona, Providence, Davidson, Indiana University, Louisville, Oklahoma and West Virginia.
– In the 2019 event, the Zags fell to Michigan in the tournament championship after beating Southern Mississippi and Oregon.
– Gonzaga won two of its three games in the 2015 Battle 4 Atlantis, beating Washington and falling to Texas
A&M and then defeat UConn for third place.

SHARING IS CAREFUL
– Ryan Nembhardt 9.7 assists per game is third in the nation after dishing out 47 assists (1st in the nation) to just six turnovers through the first five games.
– His 7.83 assist-to-turnover ratio is 10th in the nation.
– Gonzaga is second in the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio at 2.38. The Zags’ 19 assists per game tops the West Coast Conference.

BEWARE OF THE CLIFF
– The Bulldogs only turn the ball over eight times per game. match, which is second in the country.
– After having 11 turnovers in the season-opening win over Baylor, GU has had single-digit turnovers in each of the last four games.
– Gonzaga had four turnovers in the win over Long Beach State. The second fewest by the Zags in the past six seasons. (three turnovers, San Francisco on 3/11/24)
– The Bulldogs are second in the nation with a turnover percentage of 11.2. Toledo is first at 10.8 per cent.