MBB Hosts Warner Pacific in Exhibition Wednesday

Gonzaga (0-0) vs. Warner Pacific (0-0)
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 30 | 6 P.M. | McCARTHEY ATHLETIC CENTER | SPOKANE
TELEVISION: KHQ
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THE OPENING TIP
– Gonzaga welcomes Warner Pacific (Ore.) to the McCarthey Athletic Center for an exhibition game Wednesday at 6 p.m.
– The Bulldogs fell to USC, 96-93, in their season-opening exhibition Saturday in Palm Desert, Calif. Five Zags finished in double-digit scoring led by Khalif Battle’s 20 points.
– The Zags are ranked No. 6 in the preseason Associated Press poll. GU received 1,157 points in the preseason ranking, along with a first-place vote.
– This marks the 24th straight season Gonzaga has been ranked in the AP poll. It’s the 15th consecutive year the Bulldogs have appeared in the preseason poll, starting in the top-20 for the 12th straight season.
– Gonzaga joins Duke, Kansas, Kentucky, and North Carolina as the only programs that have appeared in each of the last 15 preseason AP Polls.
– In last season’s exhibition, No. 11/12 GU eased to a 96-58 victory over Lewis-Clark State. In his Zag debut Graham Ike led all scorers with 24 points. The Wyoming transfer made 11 of 13 from the field. Braden Huff added 21 points on 8-of-11 shooting, with a game-high nine rebounds. Nolan Hickman had 11 points, while Ben Gregg chipped in 10. Ryan Nembhard finished with 10 assists.
– Last season, the Bulldogs advanced to their ninth straight Sweet 16, the longest active streak in the nation, and finished with a 27-8 record. Gonzaga finished No. 15 in the final AP Poll.
– The Zags extended its NCAA Div. 1 record to 17 straight seasons of at least 25 wins. GU’s 27-straight 20-win seasons ranks second behind for the longest active run in the country.
– Of the 12 possible players that could come back from last season, 10 return for the 2024-25 campaign, including all four starters. The Bulldogs welcome back 81 percent of last season’s scoring, along with 71 percent of their rebounding.
– The Zags are bringing back six of its top seven scorers, along with 81.4 percent of the minutes played, which is the highest retention rate for GU in almost 20 years. Only four other programs in the country bring back a higher percentage of minutes played.
 
SCOUTING THE KNIGHTS
– Warner Pacific University, in Portland, Ore., is a member of the Cascade Collegiate Conference in the NAIA.
– Bulldog senior Ben Gregg’s father Matt Gregg is the Director of Athletics at WPU.
– The Knights played a pair of exhibitions at Alaska-Anchorage Friday and Saturday. UAA won both 80-55 and 88-50. Terrin Dickey led WPU with a total of 18 points in the two games against the NCAA Div. II Seawolves. Collin Oestereich and Tre’von Cason both totaled 14 points. Cason added 12 rebounds, while Oestereich had 11. Jurrien Sparks came off the bench to dish out seven assists in the games.
– Oestereich attended Allan Hancock College and was teammates with the Zags’ Noah Haaland.
– Grad student Matt Solomon returns after averaging a team-high 18.6 points per game last season. His 4.7 rebounds per game was second on the team, and his 55 assists were third.
– Warner Pacific was picked eighth out of 12 teams in the Cascade Collegiate Conference preseason poll.
 
SERIES INFO
– The programs have met only once in the regular season, an 88-61 Zag victory in Spokane on Dec. 21, 1988. GU shot 70.4 percent from the field, which ranks third in program history, including 73.3 percent (22/30) from the field in the first half.
– On Nov. 2, 2022, Gonzaga eased to a 101-70 exhibition victory over Warner Pacific. Five Zags finished in double-digit scoring led by Drew Timme’s game-high 21 points on 9-for-11 shooting from the field. Nolan Hickman chipped in 11 points. Gonzaga led for the entirety of the game, shooting 52.7 percent from the field, while holding the Knights to 38.2 percent. The Bulldogs outrebounded WPU 53-30, with 20 offensive boards. GU dished out 24 assists and forced 18 turnovers.
 
UP NEXT
– No. 6 Gonzaga welcomes No. 8 Baylor to Spokane for a Top-10 matchup in the Spokane Arena to open the regular season on Nov. 4 at 8:30 p.m.
– It will be the eighth all-time meeting, with seven of the previous games have been on a neutral court, and five of the meetings have been decided by single digits.
– Baylor was picked fourth in the Big 12 Conference preseason poll, led by preseason All-Conference honors V.J. Edgecombe and Jeremy Roach. Edgecombe was tabbed the Freshman of the Year, while Roach was named the co-Newcomer of the Year, joining his teammate Norchad Omier on the All-Big 12 Second Team.
– The Bulldogs won the first meeting between the programs, 77-75, on Nov. 29, 1991, in Fresno, Calif.
– The Zags won the first five meetings, but Baylor has won the last two matchups, the 2021 National Championship game in Indianapolis, and the latest in the 2022 Peacock Classic in Sioux Falls, S.D.
– In that 2022 meeting, Adam Flagler hit a pair of threes as No. 6 Baylor scored the final eight points of the game to rally past No. 14 Gonzaga 64-63.
 
ZAGS OPEN SEASON RANKED NO. 6 IN AP POLL
– Gonzaga was ranked No. 6 in the preseason Associated Press poll. The Bulldogs received 1,157 points in the preseason ranking, along with a first-place vote.
– This marks the 24th straight season GU has been ranked in the AP poll.
– It’s the 15th consecutive year the Zags have appeared in the preseason poll, starting in the top-20 for the 12th straight season.
– Gonzaga joins Duke, Kansas, Kentucky, and North Carolina as the only programs that have appeared in each of the last 15 preseason AP Polls.
– Since 2017, GU averages a 7.25 ranking in the AP Preseason Poll, which ranks fourth in the nation.
– The Zags have finished in the Top-15 in each of the last eight final AP polls, the only program in the nation to accomplish that feat. GU has ended the past eight seasons with an average ranking of 5.25, which tops the country.
 
STEADY IN THE POLLS
– The Bulldogs have appeared in 149 out of the last 155 AP Polls all since the start of the 2017 season, only behind Kansas’s 154 appearances.
– Gonzaga has an average ranking of 6.6 in the AP Polls since 2017, which is second behind Kansas at 6.0.
 
THE SLATE
– Gonzaga and preseason No. 3 UConn square off in the Hall of Fame Series in New York City on Dec. 14.
– The Zags welcome No. 8 Baylor to the Spokane Arena for the regular season opener on Nov. 4.
– No. 23 Kentucky and the Bulldogs meet in Seattle on Dec. 7, before Gonzaga plays No. 22 UCLA in the West Coast Hoops Showdown in Inglewood, Calif., on Dec. 28.
– Arizona and Indiana are potential opponents in the Battle 4 Atlantis. Arizona is ranked No. 10 in the preseason AP Top 25, while Indiana is 17.
– Arizona State (Nov. 10), San Diego State (Nov. 18), and Saint Mary’s (Feb. 1 and Feb. 22) all were receiving votes.
– During their non-conference slate, the Zags face a potential of six teams that advanced to the NCAA Tournament last season. Seven non-conference opponents won 20 or more games in 2023-24 and finished inside the Top 150 in last year’s NET rankings.
– GU plays teams from nine different conferences, including the Big Ten, Big East, Big 12, SEC and potentially the ACC.
– The Bulldogs are a participant in this year’s Battle 4 Atlantis and four more neutral site games.
 
BULLDOGS PICKED TO WIN WCC
– For the 22nd time in the last 24 seasons, the Gonzaga men’s basketball team was selected as favorites in the West Coast Conference preseason coaches’ poll. The annual poll, along with the WCC Preseason Team, was released at the eighth annual #WCCHoops Tip-Off event at the Resorts World Resort.
– Except for last season and in 2017-18, the Zags have been first place in every WCC preseason poll since 2001. GU received nine of the league’s 11 first place votes in the poll.
– Coaches are not allowed to vote for their own program.
– Saint Mary’s and San Francisco collected the other two first place votes in this year’s poll. The Zags had 99 points in the poll, while Saint Mary’s was second with 86, and Santa Clara was third with 81. San Francisco and Washington State rounded out the top-half of the league.
– The Bulldogs have won 24 of the last 27 WCC regular season championships, 20 of which have been won outright.
– GU has 26 WCC regular season titles overall, including 22 of the last 24.
– Gonzaga has appeared in 27 straight WCC Tournament Championship games, which is the longest streak of its kind in the nation. The Zags have won the conference tournament title 10 times in the last 13 years.
 
QUARTET TABBED PRESEASON ALL-WCC
– Michael Ajayi, Nolan Hickman, Graham Ike, and Ryan Nembhard were all named to the conference’s preseason team. Ike and Nembhard earned the recognition for the second straight season. Ajayi, Ike, and Nembhard were all named First Team All-Conference last season, while Hickman was second team.
– It’s the third time four GU players were named to the same WCC preseason team, and the first since 2018.
 
ANOTHER HIGH KENPOM RANKING
– Gonzaga came in at No. 9 overall and No. 2 in the metrics’ offensive efficiency scale in KenPom’s preseason metric rankings.
– Houston sits atop the ratings, with Duke, Auburn, Alabama and UConn in the Top 5. Kansas, Iowa State, Arizona and Purdue round out the Top 10.
– On top of having the No. 2 offense, the Zags are No. 45 in adjusted defensive efficiency. GU’s defense ranked 51st last season.
– Referred to as KenPom, the advanced analytics website ranks all 364 Division-I men’s college basketball teams based on numerous factors. It considers aspects such as a team’s offensive and defensive efficiencies, tempo, luck and strength of schedule.
 
EXPERIENCE IS KEY
– Of the 12 possible players that could come back from last season, 10 return for the 2024-25 campaign, including all four starters.
– The Bulldogs welcome back 81 percent of last season’s scoring, along with 71 percent of their rebounding.
– The Zags are bringing back six of its top seven scorers, along with 81.4 percent of the minutes played, which is the highest retention rate for GU in almost 20 years. Only four other programs in the country bring back a higher percentage of minutes played.
– Three Gonzaga players have played in over 100 games, with Ryan Nembhard at 99.
– Four Zags have scored over 1,000 points, and Nolan Hickman is at 937.
– Six Bulldogs averaged double-digit scoring last season, while Ben Gregg scored nine points per game.
– Six GU players have pulled down over 300 rebounds in their career, and three have dished out over 200 assists.
 
PRESEASON TEAM RANKINGS
– The Athletic: 2
– Blue Ribbon Magazine: 4
– Lindy’s Magazine: 5
– ESPN: 5
– Andy Katz: 8
– Dickie V: 8
– CBS Sports: 8
– Fox Sports: 8
 
PRESEASON PLAYER MENTIONS
– Ryan Nembhard
No. 61 – Lindy’s Magazine Top 150 Players
Lindy’s Magazine All-Ironman Team
Lindy’s Magazine First Team All-WCC
Lindy’s Magazine WCC Top Playmaker
 
– Graham Ike
No. 17 – Lindy’s Magazine Top 150 Players
Blue Ribbon Magazine Third Team All-American
Blue Ribbon Magazine All-Conference Team
Blue Ribbon Magazine WCC Player of the Year
Lindy’s Magazine First Team All-WCC
Lindy’s Magazine WCC Player of the Year
Jon Rothstein’s Third Team All-American
 
– Michael Ajayi
No. 29 – Lindy’s Magazine Top 150 Players
Blue Ribbon Magazine All-Conference Team
Lindy’s Magazine First Team All-WCC
Lindy’s Magazine WCC Top NBA Prospect
– Nolan Hickman
No. 91 – Lindy’s Magazine Top 150 Players
Lindy’s Magazine Second Team All-WCC
Lindy’s Magazine WCC Top Shooter
 
– Khalif Battle
No. 142 – Lindy’s Magazine Top 150 Players
Lindy’s Magazine Third Team All-WCC
Blue Ribbon Magazine WCC Newcomer of the Year
 
– Ben Gregg
Lindy’s Magazine Third Team All-WCC
 
– Braden Huff
Jon Rothstein’s Twenty Breakout Players for 2024-25
 
– Gonzaga’s Backcourt ranked second in the nation by Lindy’s Magazine, while the frontcourt was fifth.
– Blue Ribbon Yearbook lists Gonzaga’s backcourt and frontcourt the best in the WCC.
– Dick Vitale names GU’s backcourt as some of the top Floor Generals in the country.
 
THE GOLDEN FEW
– Gonzaga Head Coach Mark Few won a gold medal with Team USA at the Summer Olympics in Paris.
– Few was an assistant coach for Team USA on the 2023 FIBA World Cup and the 2024 Olympics. The staff included Head Coach and Golden State Warriors Head Coach Steve Kerr, Miami Heat Head Coach Erik Spoelstra and Clippers Head Coach Tyronn Lue.
– Few was an assistant coach at the 2018 USA National Team minicamp, he was named an assistant coach for the 2019 USA Men’s Select Team, a team that helped prepare the USA World Cup Team prior to playing in China. He returned in 2021 as an assistant coach for the USA Men’s Select Team to help prepare the gold medalist U.S. Olympic Team prior to playing in Tokyo.
– Few served as head coach of the 2015 U.S. Pan American Men’s Basketball Team, a squad composed of collegiate players, and led the team to a bronze medal, and he also was an assistant coach for the gold medalist 2012 USA U18 National Team and a court coach for the 2009 USA Men’s U19 World Cup/World University Games Team training camp.
 
ZAGS AT THE OLYMPICS
– Coach Few wasn’t the only Gonzaga representative at the Summer Olympics in Paris.
– Andrew Nembhard and Kelly Olynyk were on the Canadian roster, while Rui Hachimura returned for Japan, and Filip Petrusev competed for Serbia.
– Petrusev led Serbia to a bronze medal, averaging 9.7 points at 67.6 percent shooting from the field, which was fifth in the tournament. He added 4.5 rebounds.
– Hachimura averaged 22 points in three games, along with 6.5 rebounds.
 
FEW … A LEGEND OF COACHING
– Mark Few will receive the John R. Wooden Award “Legends of Coaching” Award, presented by Principal Financial Group, in 2025. Coach Wooden’s grandson-in-law Craig Impelman was proud to announce Few’s selection at the Los Angeles Athletic Club’s annual Wooden Award Tip-Off Luncheon.
– The “Legends of Coaching” honor recognizes coaches who exemplify Coach Wooden’s high standard of coaching success and personal integrity and was adopted by the Wooden Award Steering Committee in 1999.
– The honorees are selected based on character, success on the court, graduation rate of student-athletes in their basketball program, coaching philosophy, and identification with the goals of the John R. Wooden Award.
– Few will be presented the honor alongside the 2025 Wooden Award winners presented by Principal on April 11, 2025.
 
ZAGS IN THE NBA
– The NBA season opens with 11 former GU standouts on NBA rosters.
– Kelly Olynyk had the longest tenure in the league and returns to the Toronto Raptors roster.
– Anton Watson is the newest Bulldog in the league on the Boston Celtics after being drafted 55th in June.
 
PAC ATTACK
– Gonzaga is headed to the Pac-12 Conference in all sports beginning July 1, 2026.
– The Zags will join Oregon State, Washington State, Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State, and Utah State.
– The NET rankings for those teams from March 17, 2024 …
17. Gonzaga
20. San Diego State
26. Boise State
36. Colorado State
38. Utah State
44. Washington State
165. Oregon State
233. Fresno State
– The average NET ranking of 72.4 of these members would have been the fourth strongest conference in the nation last season, ahead of the ACC and the Big East.
– Of the future eight members, seven have appeared in the NCAA Tournament over the past four seasons with a combined 18 appearances in that time (since the 2021 Tournament), including Gonzaga’s run to the National Championship in 2021 and San Diego State’s National Championship appearance in 2023.
– Additionally, four of the future eight members have made the NCAA Tournament the last two seasons, three of the eight in each of the last three seasons and both Gonzaga and San Diego State each of the last four seasons, while the Bulldogs have made the field in each of the last 25 tournaments. since 1999.
 
ZAGS ENJOY PACKED KRAZINESS
– The annual Numerica Kraziness in the Kennel had a new look in 2024 as ESPN’s Sean Farnham hosted the event in front of a sold out McCarthey Athletic Center.
– Gonzaga fans cheered and roared several video elements, surprise guests, and special announcements, all before a three-point contest, half-court shootout, and intersquad scrimmage.
– Farnham surprised GU Head Coach Mark Few with a video montage and autographed basketball from Team USA members from the Olympic gold medal squad. Few’s family came out presented the ball.
– Former Zags Joel Ayayi, Corey Kispert, and Drew Timme also visited through a video message.
– GU student Matthew Ryan hit a half-court shot that sent the standing room only crowd into a frenzy.
– Dusty Stromer held off two-time three-point contest champion Nolan Hickman in the finals.
– An Emmanuel Innocenti three-pointer in the final seconds gave the White squad a 36-34 win over the Navy team.
– Stromer continued his hot shooting and led all scorers with 11 points on the Navy team. Ben Gregg had 10 points.
– Michael Ajayi scored nine points and grabbed a game-high eight rebounds in the 20-minute scrimmage.
 
SEASON-OPENING SUCCESS
– The Zags have won 20 straight regular season-openers dating back to a 73-66 loss to Saint Joseph’s in the 2003 Coaches vs. Cancer Classic in New York City.
– GU has won 34 consecutive regular season home-openers since a 73-65 loss to Boise State on Dec. 7, 1988.
– Gonzaga has won all 19 regular season home-openers in the McCarthey Athletic Center and all 25 regular season home-openers under Mark Few.
 
THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE HOME
– Since the McCarthey Athletic Center opened in 2004, Gonzaga boasts a 278-18 record at home.
– The Zags’ 93.9 winning percentage at home since 2004-05 ranks second in the nation.
– GU has sold out every game since the 6,000-seat McCarthey Athletic Center opened, a streak of 296 games.
 
LIFE ON THE ROAD
– Since the 2016-17 season, Gonzaga is a national best 66-8 (88.6) in true road games. Saint Mary’s has the next best true road win percentage at 74.0 (55-19).
– Since the 2007-08 season, the Zags are 137-31 in true road games. GU’s 81.9-win pct. in true road games is best in the nation.
– Since the 2005-06 season, Gonzaga is 271-79 in road or neutral games. The Zags’ 77.6-win percentage in road or neutral games tops the nation over that span.
 
IMPRESSIVE WCC STATS
– Since the 2016-17 season, the Zags have won 120 out of their last 128 West Coast Conference regular season games. Including the WCC Tournament, GU is 136-10 over that span.
– The Bulldogs have won 79 of their last 86 games against WCC foes dating back to the 2019-20 season.
 
FEEL FREE TO USE THESE AT A PARTY
– The Bulldogs have won 170 straight games when leading by 10 or more points at halftime.
– Gonzaga’s eight straight road wins ranks as the third longest current active streak in the country.
– Gonzaga owns the NCAA Div. 1 record with 17 straight 25-win seasons.
– The Zags’ 27-straight 20-win seasons rank second for the longest active run in the country. (Kansas 33)
– Per ESPN stats, the Zags are the fourth program ever to reach nine straight Sweet 16s. They join UCLA, Duke, and North Carolina. Since the field expanded in 1985, North Carolina and Duke had streaks of nine straight Sweet 16s, which rank as the longest.
 
LAST SEASON WHEN …
– The Zags were 25-1 when scoring 76 points.
– GU was 21-2 when Nolan Hickman scored 12 or more, and 16-2 when he dished out three or more assists.
– Gonzaga was 14-1 when Graham Ike scored 20 points or more, and 19-3 when scoring 15.
– The Bulldogs were 12-0 when Ben Gregg scored 12 points and 15-1 when he scored 10 or more. GU was also 11-0 when he made two or more threes.
– GU was 24-1 when shooting 30 percent or better from three-point range, and was 21-2 when making six or more threes in a game, with both losses to Purdue. The Bulldogs were 20-0 when making seven or more threes.