University of North Carolina Athletics
Photo by: Rebecca Lawson
Know Your Opponent: Gonzaga
December 12, 2018 | Men's Basketball
By Bobby Hundley
Gonzaga (GoZags.com)
Location: Spokane, Wash.
Rankings: No. 6 KenPom, No. 4 AP
Record: 9-1
Carolina Series History (Last Meeting): Carolina leads 2-1 (Carolina 71, Gonzaga 65, April 3, 2017, Glendale, Ariz.)
Saturday night's rematch of the 2017 NCAA title game will feature two of the top four offenses in college basketball. According to KenPom.com's adjusted offensive efficiency rating, Gonzaga is the No. 1 offense in the land, with Carolina close behind at No. 4. Both teams rank higher than they did two seasons ago at the Final Four, but both have also dipped in the defensive rankings. The 2017 Bulldogs were the top defense in the country, but this year's edition comes in at No. 56.
The 2018-19 Zags score relentlessly thanks to a lethal combination of tempo, shooting and ball security. GU ranks fourth nationally in 2-point field goal percentage and fourth in effective FG% (2FG+3FG) despite not having Killian Tillie yet this year. The 6-10 junior made 62 percent of his 2s and 48 percent of his 3s last season, so the Bulldogs may yet have another gear to hit once the Frenchman returns.
In the absence of Tillie, this season has been a coming out party for another international Zag. Rui Hachimura, a 6-8 forward from Japan, is thriving in his first year as a starter. The junior star leads the team with 22.2 points per contest and was named Most Outstanding Player at the Maui Invitational after a 20p/7r/5a/3b line against Duke in the final. He made the game-winning shot in Gonzaga's 81-79 win over Washington on Dec. 5 and has not scored fewer than 17 points in a game this season.
Fellow junior Brandon Clarke joins Hachimura in the starting frontcourt. After sitting out the 2018 season, the San Jose State transfer has been massive in replacing both departed senior Johnathan Williams and the injured Tillie. Clarke is second on the team in scoring, makes 71 percent of his 2s and is one of the top offensive rebounders in the country.Â
Senior point guard Josh Perkins leads a talented backcourt that is missing grad transfer Geno Crandall. The former North Dakota standout suffered a broken hand in practice in late November and is expected to be out another few weeks. In the four games the Zags have played without Crandall, Perkins has played at least 36 minutes three times. The fifth-year senior averages better than eight assists per game and has turned it over just 14 times in 329 minutes of action this year.
Zack Norvell Jr. and Corey Kispert round out Mark Few's starting five and are the Bulldogs' volume outside shooters. Norvell is making 38 percent on nearly nine attempts per game while Kispert is connecting at almost 42 percent from deep. With Crandall and Tillie out, Few has employed a pretty short bench, with only 6-11 freshman Filip Petrusev and 6-7 senior Jeremy Jones getting significant minutes.
Saturday will be one of the biggest non-conference games of the year in college basketball and won't greatly impact the future prospects of either program. But a win for either team will go right to the top of the postseason résumé and could mean the difference in a seed line or two come March.Â
Gonzaga (GoZags.com)
Location: Spokane, Wash.
Rankings: No. 6 KenPom, No. 4 AP
Record: 9-1
Carolina Series History (Last Meeting): Carolina leads 2-1 (Carolina 71, Gonzaga 65, April 3, 2017, Glendale, Ariz.)
Saturday night's rematch of the 2017 NCAA title game will feature two of the top four offenses in college basketball. According to KenPom.com's adjusted offensive efficiency rating, Gonzaga is the No. 1 offense in the land, with Carolina close behind at No. 4. Both teams rank higher than they did two seasons ago at the Final Four, but both have also dipped in the defensive rankings. The 2017 Bulldogs were the top defense in the country, but this year's edition comes in at No. 56.
The 2018-19 Zags score relentlessly thanks to a lethal combination of tempo, shooting and ball security. GU ranks fourth nationally in 2-point field goal percentage and fourth in effective FG% (2FG+3FG) despite not having Killian Tillie yet this year. The 6-10 junior made 62 percent of his 2s and 48 percent of his 3s last season, so the Bulldogs may yet have another gear to hit once the Frenchman returns.
In the absence of Tillie, this season has been a coming out party for another international Zag. Rui Hachimura, a 6-8 forward from Japan, is thriving in his first year as a starter. The junior star leads the team with 22.2 points per contest and was named Most Outstanding Player at the Maui Invitational after a 20p/7r/5a/3b line against Duke in the final. He made the game-winning shot in Gonzaga's 81-79 win over Washington on Dec. 5 and has not scored fewer than 17 points in a game this season.
Fellow junior Brandon Clarke joins Hachimura in the starting frontcourt. After sitting out the 2018 season, the San Jose State transfer has been massive in replacing both departed senior Johnathan Williams and the injured Tillie. Clarke is second on the team in scoring, makes 71 percent of his 2s and is one of the top offensive rebounders in the country.Â
Senior point guard Josh Perkins leads a talented backcourt that is missing grad transfer Geno Crandall. The former North Dakota standout suffered a broken hand in practice in late November and is expected to be out another few weeks. In the four games the Zags have played without Crandall, Perkins has played at least 36 minutes three times. The fifth-year senior averages better than eight assists per game and has turned it over just 14 times in 329 minutes of action this year.
Zack Norvell Jr. and Corey Kispert round out Mark Few's starting five and are the Bulldogs' volume outside shooters. Norvell is making 38 percent on nearly nine attempts per game while Kispert is connecting at almost 42 percent from deep. With Crandall and Tillie out, Few has employed a pretty short bench, with only 6-11 freshman Filip Petrusev and 6-7 senior Jeremy Jones getting significant minutes.
Saturday will be one of the biggest non-conference games of the year in college basketball and won't greatly impact the future prospects of either program. But a win for either team will go right to the top of the postseason résumé and could mean the difference in a seed line or two come March.Â
Sunday, June 07
Sunday, June 07
Sunday, June 07
Saturday, June 06