Zags Around the Web and Other WCC Musings...

Whether you agree with it or not, this year's Gonzaga team is getting tons of love from the press.  After two blowouts in which the Zags showed little to no weakness, this praise looks to be deserved.  Just think about this.  In the first game against MSU-B, Michael Hall scored the last 14 points of the first half against the Bulldogs.  In the first half last night, Idaho could only muster up 11 points.  Beautiful.

--  If you missed last night's Arizona-UAB game, it was probably a good thing but ESPN analyst and hairstyle enthusiast Steven Lavin ranked the Zags as the second best team in the West.  Obviously he has UCLA as the best team out West.  Gonzaga was followed by USC, Arizona State, and fellow WCC team St. Mary's.  It's hard to disagree with the ranking because of how good UCLA has been in the past few years but if you watched them against Miami of Ohio, it's clear to see that they are vulnerable.  As far as the Gonzaga-Arizona match up goes...let's just hope Kyle Fogg and Jamelle Horne are on the floor as much as possible for the 'Cats.

-- In some surprising news to me, former Gonzaga prospect Jeff Reid has signed a letter of intent with St. Louis University.  The Zags were extremely off and on with Reid.  They loved him early on and then seemed to move away but then Reid showed up at Gonzaga's Elite Camp.  I liked Reid and thought he would end up at Kansas State.  Best of luck to Jeff.  

-- The next opponent for the Gonzaga Bulldogs is the Cowboys of Oklahoma State.  The 'Pokes are 2-0 on the young season.   They beat Texas-San Antonio by 19 in their first game and beat North Texas by 12 points two nights ago.  Oklahoma State has two more games before they match up with the Zags.  They will play Tulsa on Thursday and Grambling State on the 23rd of November

Looking at how the rest of the WCC fared in recent action.

• Santa Clara's John Bryant had 23 second half points but it wasn't enough in SCU's four point loss to Florida Atlantic, 65-61
• A very good BYU team routed the Pepperdine Waves, 82-53
• A well contested in-state rivalry ended in a Portland State victory over the Portland Pilots.  The question now is how much will the Vikings beat UW by when the face off in December.
• San Diego welcomed back Gyno Pomare in their very impressive victory over Nevada, 65-51.  The Torero's shut down super freshman Luke Babbitt, who only had three points.
• A very inconsistent San Francisco team kept their most recent match up with Cal very close.  Cal won by 10 but, in good news for the Dons, Manny Quezada and Dior Lowhorn had excellent games with 27 and 20 points, respectively.
• St. Mary's looked excellent at home in their 14 point victory over Fresno State, 99-85.  Patty Mills had 27 points and Omar Samhan pulled down 13 rebounds...but this video is probably the thing everyone will remember from that game.

Things to Watch for in May

May used to be the beginning of a prolonged down time for college sports fans. Basketball and football were over, college baseball was coming to an end, the only thing really going on is the MLB. Today, that is no longer the case. May should be a very busy month for Gonzaga sports fans as recruiting is heating up in basketball and the baseball team is closing out a very successful season. Here are a few things to watch for as summer rolls around.

1. Late 2008 basketball recruiting- After missing on Jeff Taylor and transfer Taylor King, the Zags hope to pick up at least one more impact recruit to add to their already impressive 2008 class Speculations and rumors are all abound. Recently, 6'8'' Serbian Luka Basta visited Spokane and toured the campus. He is currently 18 and if he came here he would be a 2008 recruit. However, rumors have recently picked up that Bol Kong(right) could be the missing piece of the 2008 class. His former coach was recently hired at Idaho and claimed that he had been hearing Gonzaga as Kong's potential landing spot. Kong was a transplant from Sudan and now lives in Canada. He has struggled to get a Visa to play in America but if the reports are correct, that is the only thing separating him from Spokane.
2. 2009 Recruiting Developments- To be honest, Gonzaga is due for some good news recruiting wise. After just losing Brock Osweiler to ASU last night, it seems that Mark Few needs to make a push right away. With the departure of Osweiler, there is an obviously hole to fill at the power forward/center position. However, Gonzaga does not seem to be following any big banger that passionately right now. Rather, the Zags are focusing on guards such as Anthony Marshall, Jeff Reid, and Marshall Henderson. Being a betting man, I would assume that the obvious choice in this situation would be Henderson. He claims Gonzaga is one of his dream schools and has a Grant Gibbs feel about him in that both are obsessed with the school. He would also fill a big void because he is a lights out shooter who averages nearly 24 points a game and can really light it up from 3 point land. The only consistent shooter GU will have on the roster next year will be Steven Gray. Anthony Marshall will probably wait a little while longer as it seems that his stock is about to blow up. Reid (left) is also interesting because he has only been offered by Kansas State but Gonzaga has been watching him heavily and he has visited the campus so he could be a sleeper commit. These three appear to be brightest on Gonzaga's radar right now. But only time will tell.
3. Gonzaga Baseball Season Coming to an End- Fresh off their two game sweep of two-time champ Oregon State, Gonzaga baseball hopes to finish up their season strong. They have a three game series with San Francisco, then a match-up with Lewis and Clark College, followed by a game against heated rival Washington State. The bulldogs finally finish up their season at Loyola Marymount with a three game series finishing on May 18th. The Bulldogs hope to carry their momentum into the WCC championship and potentially earn a NCAA tournament bid. They lost last year in the WCC finals to perennial power San Diego. USD and Pepperdine are both very strong this year but Gonzaga has the defense and pitching to give either team a solid run.
Other stories of note include Jeremy Pargo and whether or not he will continue to pursue the NBA draft. We will also be watching the Crew teams as their seasons wrap up.

Gonzaga recruits at the Jayhawk Invitational

This upcoming weekend many of the finest basketball players of the 2009, 2010, and 2011 will be descending upon Kansas University for the Jayhawk Invitational. Two of the main prospects for the 09 recruiting class for Gonzaga will be there. I have to believe that Mark Few and/or the top assistants will be there to scout the great talent.


Anthony Marshall and his Las Vegas Prospect team will be there and he will be going up against the Atlanta Celtics in his pool. The Celtics are one of the premier AAU teams in the nation, and include Derrick Favors and Lance Stephenson who are two of the top 10 players in the 09 class.

Marshall's pool: Pool C- Atlanta Celtics, Las Vegas Prospects, KC Nuggets, St. Louis Raptors

Schedule: 5/2 @ 9:45 P.M- vs. Atlanta Celtics
5/3 @ 10:30 A.M- vs KC Nuggets
5/3 @ 2:15 P.M- vs St. Louis Raptors

Jeff Reid and his KC Pump 'N Run team will be there as well. Reid and Marshall are two of the top targets for Gonzaga and the class of 09' and both would be excellent additions to any team across the nation.


Reid's pool: Pool A- KC Pump 'N Run, Pump N Run Elite, Springfield Mustangs, KC Swish

Schedule: 5/2 @ 8:30 P.M - vs Pump N Run Elite
5/3 @ 9:15 A.M- vs Springfield Mustangs
5/3 @ 1:00 P.M - vs KC Swish

We will keep you updated on the schedules should either team advance to bracket play