Gonzaga notches a critical win versus Kentucky in Spokane Arena

On Sunday evening, all eyes in college basketball were on Spokane Arena, where a battle between “new blood” Gonzaga and the bluest of blue bloods Kentucky went down. A fervent fanbase stoked on by two-plus decades of increasing success, against a team that has been at the top of the sport since time immemorial. Two of the biggest brands in college basketball, nationally televised on ESPN, in prime time. It doesn’t get much bigger than that.

With an 88-72 win, Gonzaga proved to be the bigger of the two programs for at least one evening. “It was a phenomenal environment in here tonight,” Gonzaga head coach Mark Few said after the game.

A record-setting crowd of 12,333 spectators — the largest crowd in the history of Spokane Arena — took in the sights and sounds as the Zags trounced the Wildcats.

When this game was first announced over the summer, many around Zag Nation, and the greater college basketball landscape, poked fun at Kentucky head coach John Calipari for his unwillingness to schedule the game at Gonzaga’s true home gym: McCarthey Athletic Center (aka The Kennel). Big Blue Nation, as Kentucky and its fandom is known, was simply too prestigious to play in Gonzaga’s small, 6,000 seat on-campus gym. Calipari said as much himself.

Anybody that wants us to play in a 6,000-seat facility, wants us to lose! And I get that. I tried to look back and find the last time UK played in a true regular-season road game with 6,000 or fewer fans. I stopped looking after the 70s.

— John Calipari (@UKCoachCalipari) August 4, 2022

Well... at least there were twice as many people on hand Sunday who wanted to see Kentucky lose.
For the first time this season, Gonzaga played a comprehensive 40-minute basketball game. The Zags looked dominant on both ends of the floor. Gonzaga forward Drew Timme scored 22 points in a marquee matchup with Kentucky's defending National Player of the Year, forward Oscar Tshiebwe (20 points). Timme went to work on the block as he has his entire career, using deft footwork to not only score the ball but pressure the opposing team — Timme drew fouls relentlessly, with Tshiebwe and fellow big man Lance Ware finishing with four fouls a piece. Spokane’s own Anton Watson (10 points, 10 rebounds) proved a defensive menace on the block, allowing Timme some respite on that end of the floor.

“Anton was phenomenal tonight. He was spectacular. If we can get that out of him every night, we're going to be just fine,” Few said postgame. “Every one of Oscar's [baskets] were tough. I mean, it's surprising that he ended up with 20 [points]. That's how good of a player he is. But I thought Anton was not only phenomenal there, but also on the glass, and then also offensively. He was big-time for us.”

The Zags also saw key contributions from junior wing Julian Strawther, who contributed 20 points and 14 rebounds. Late in the game, as Kentucky made a couple of stunted runs, it was senior guard Rasir Bolton who took control — scoring 10 of his game-high 24 points in the final four minutes — as the Zags relied on his experience to help close the game out.

“Give Gonzaga credit," said Calipari, "because when we came back in that environment — it was a great environment by the way... we had a chance to win that game. And we let go of the rope and they finished us off. So you got to give them credit."

The Zags showed a fight, and a well-rounded approach to that fight, the likes of which they had not this season to date. It was especially impressive considering the Bulldogs got run out of the gym with a concerning 93-74 blowout loss at Texas just days prior to the game versus UK. The result versus Kentucky gives GU its biggest win of the season, one that should be relevant when it comes time to seed for the NCAA Tournament in March.
That's important because the Zags now move on to another tough test. The Zags head to Portland for the Phil Night Legacy Tournament, a Thanksgiving weekend tourney where they will face off against some of the toughest teams in the country.

“I just told the guys, we can enjoy this one tonight and then we got to... head for Portland here in a little bit," said Few. "That [tournament] is just loaded with great teams. It's just great to get this one under our belt because there's many, many more coming down the stretch."

UP NEXT
~Phil Knight Legacy Tournament in Portland~

First Round: Gonzaga vs. Portland State • Thur, Nov. 24 at 9:30 pm • ESPN

Second Round: Gonzaga vs. West Virginia or Purdue • Fri, Nov. 25 at 8:30 or 6 pm • ESPN or ESPNews

Third Round: Gonzaga vs. Duke/Florida/Xavier/Oregon St • Sun, Nov. 27 at TBD • TBD ABC or ESPN Network