A rollercoaster of a season, but the Zags still gave us a whole lot to be proud of against the Cougars.
It’s been a long, long season. And after 27 years of fandom, it still hurts just as much every single year to see the Zags lose in the NCAA Tournament. It hurts so much, every time. And while there are certainly far worse and far more painful ways for a season to end than at the hands of Kelvin Sampson and the absolute juggernaut that is this year’s Houston Cougars, this one still hurts, like it always does.
81–76 was the final score in Wichita. The Houston Cougars advance to take on Purdue in the Sweet 16, and the Gonzaga Bulldogs head back to Spokane—empty-handed and devastated. As a fan, it’s always brutal to see your team lose, but after that game, more than anything, it’s just heartbreaking to consider the young men in that locker room, swimming in all the what-ifs and if-onlys of a ludicrously hard-fought battle that came right down to the wire and just didn’t go their way. They fought hard, showed the kind of grit and toughness that would have won them games in January, and took one—if not the—nation’s best teams, a team that hasn’t lost since November, right to the brink of a second-round tournament exit. If anything, the Zags incontrovertibly proved against Houston that the selection committee—and the basketball world at large—had grossly underestimated these Gonzaga Bulldogs.
First Half
After the absolute drubbing they put on Georgia in the opening minutes of Thursday’s game, the Zags looked like a different team against Houston. They looked stiff from the opening tip, rushed, unable to move the ball through the relentless Houston defensive pressure. Houston’s bigs did a great job of getting Ike and Huff out of position off the low block and trapping them with doubles as soon as the ball swung their way. They bottled up Nembhard in the backcourt, gave Nolan Hickman zero daylight to find his shot, clogged Khalif’s driving lanes, and were extremely physical off the ball. Their defense was as advertised and it threw the Bulldogs completely out of rhythm. They threw the first punch and capitalized on Gonzaga’s flatfootedness.
On the other end, Houston did what they’ve done all season: slowed the pace to a crawl and let LJ Cryer bail them out. Possession after possession, the Zags played commendable defense—but in the waning seconds of the shot clock, it just didn’t matter. One of the nation’s top players would simply not be denied. Cryer finished with 30 points, tying a career high and going 6–11 from three. And these were not good, open shots, either. The dude just sunk dagger after dagger from everywhere on the floor.
Eventually, Innocenti was brought in off the bench to contain Cryer, and the Zags were able to make things competitive after being down by double digits for most of the first half. They started making shots, finding their rhythm, and actually looking like the Zags we’ve come to know. Despite the haymakers being thrown by Houston’s backcourt, Gonzaga wrangled the game’s tempo a little and stayed in it. At halftime, the Cougars led 35–27.
The most telling number in the first-half box score, though, is probably the number of free throws shot by both teams combined: two. Total. And both by Houston. Sometimes, incredibly physical teams can be held in check with foul trouble, but by halftime it was clear this was not going to be one of those games.
Second Half
Graham Ike came out absolutely blazing, cooking Houston’s bigs with finesse and physicality—even stretching the floor by going 2–2 from the perimeter. Ryan Nembhard was finally able to find the seams in Houston’s defense, working the ball inside or finding the open man on the weak side. With 7 minutes remaining, the lineup of Nembhard, Battle, Innocenti, Ajayi, and Ike struck the right balance of offensive production and defensive physicality. But every time the Zags found a little breathing room, Houston hit a clutch shot or forced a key turnover. Gonzaga worked for every single bucket and every single stop, and Houston seemed to effortlessly match them one-for-one.
I’m still not even sure what happened in the game’s final 8 minutes, but it happened quick. Gonzaga ramped up the defensive pressure, switched to a 1–3–1 zone, and did everything they could to contain Cryer in the halfcourt. There were a couple quick runs, some costly fouls by Houston, a handful of crucial stops by the Zags—and suddenly, it was a one-possession game. After some huge free throws from Graham Ike, it was down to just a single point.
After another bad foul and some Houston free throws, the Zags were down 3 with 14.2 seconds remaining, out of timeouts, and with one final possession to take things to overtime. Whatever play they were supposed to run fell apart rapidly, though. Khalif brought the ball across halfcourt, dribbled into the corner, lost control of the ball, and was walled up by three Cougars. The Zags didn’t even get a final shot off. That, as they say, was that.
After being down by as many as 14, it came down to a single possession. By the time the Zags had figured out what it took to beat Houston, it was just seconds too late.
Final Thoughts
There were a lot of reasons this game slipped away. The Zags were out-rebounded 13-5 on the offensive glass and like they always do, Houston kept finding ways to extend possessions and earn second-chance buckets. There’s plenty of fingers to point and blame to be assigned, certainly, but no missed layup, poor shot choice, or boneheaded turnover will overshadow the grit and toughness this team showed down the stretch. This is a team to be tremendously proud of and a season to be impressed by. The loss hurts, they always do, but more than anything I’m wowed by the determination and toughness these dudes showed in the second half.
The bottom line: LJ Cryer is an otherworldly basketball player, Kelvin Sampson is an all-time great basketball coach, and the Houston Cougars are a really, really, really good basketball team.
Box Score Highlights
- Ryan Nembhard played a full 40, finishing with 10 points and 11 assists against the single best defense in college basketball.
- Graham Ike tied his season high with 27 points, grabbed 5 rebounds, and went 5–5 from the line. He was the reason the Bulldogs roared back in the second.
- Khalif Battle played 39 minutes, led the team in rebounds (6), scored 17 points, and played his best on-ball defense of the season.
- Braden Huff stepped into a starting role and added 11 points on 5-8 shooting. Also dished 3 assists and had some huge defensive stops against Houston’s frontcourt.
But what the box score can’t show you is just how hard-fought this matchup really was. That was not a 1 vs 8-seed game. That was the kind of battle you’re lucky to get in the Elite Eight—or even the Final Four. Two incredibly talented teams playing at an incredibly high level with the season on the line. It’s a shame they had to play each other this early.
If you had told me in January that this Gonzaga team would take the 1-seed Houston Cougars down to a single possession in the NCAA Tournament I just plainly would not have believed you. If you had told me they would do so after being down double-digits for the majority of regulation I would have believed you even less. This team made some jaw-dropping strides this year and it’s been thrilling to witness. And although the Sweet 16 streak is now broken, it’s good to remember that there was a good chunk of this season when this team’s tournament hopes seemed far-fetched to begin with. A lot can change in a couple months.
This isn’t how anyone wanted the season to end, but it’s hard to walk away from this one feeling anything but proud of those dudes. The growth, the grit, the sheer fight this team showed—especially over the last six weeks—says everything you need to know about about their individual character, grit, and toughness. The streak may be over, but the foundation is strong and the future is bright. If this group can build on what they found down the stretch this season, they’re going to be dangerous. The Zags will be back.