this marks the first time local rivals will call each other conference mates
This Saturday, the Bulldogs will be getting ready for their next match against the Washington State Cougars in Pullman with the tip-off currently slated for 12pm PST and should be available on ESPN+.
Heading into this season, the new WCC member was selected to finish second behind the Gonzaga Bulldogs in the Preseason Rankings selected by the coaches and even picked up 2 first place votes. Two of their players were selected to the Preseason Team of the Year in the form of two guards, 5’8” sophomore Eleonora Villa and 6’2” senior Tara Wallack.
After 16 games, the Cougars look like they’re following a similar path as the Bulldogs: struggle during the non-conference portion (4-6 against D1 opponents), learn some lessons, and take it to your conference opponents (5-1). After suffering their first conference loss to Santa Clara last week, the Cougs bounced back to secure wins in their next two against Oregon State and St. Mary’s this week so this team should be respected.
Despite this recent success, I want to highlight some differences from last year’s squad that took down the ‘23-24 Zags early in the season in Spokane as to why this Bulldogs squad could potentially leave Pullman with the W.
Last season’s Cougs were a stout defensive team holding opponents to just under 62 points with an offense averaging 69 points per game that did most of it’s damage within the arc. This iteration of Wazzu has seen some subtle, but important, shifts in their statistical breakdown.
First, they’re scoring a few less points per game with 66, a number their opponents are also matching. Second, the team’s shooting has shifted from predominantly shooting two-pointers, 40.9 to 35.9, to now featuring more outside shooting, 18.3 to 23.7. And third, the team’s ball distribution has dipped as their A/T ratio has dropped from 1.22 (15.3/12.5) to 0.93 (13.7/14.8).
The Zags might struggle with the physical defense that the Cougars provide to their opponents and depending on the home crowd, it could be a hostile environment. Wazzu currently ranks in the top 10 nationally with over 6 blocks per game and despite their lack of steals, just over 6 per game, they force a fair amount of turnovers and that has been an area of concern this season for the Zags. I suspect how the Bulldogs manage this potential pressure may be a strong determinant in this outcome.
From an individual stance, Gonzaga will need to be mindful of the “guard” paring of Eleonora Villa and Tara Wallack. Guard has been listed in quotes for reasons that will be explained shortly.
Villa, who is not related to another guard in Jenna Villa, leads the team with nearly 14 points per game while Wallack trails just behind with about 13. Both players shoot the majority of their shots within the arc, but they have shown the willingness to step out beyond the arc as both average over 4 per game, although they aren’t particularly efficient with their 29.4% and 26.5% marks, respectively.
Eleonora fits a statistical profile more akin to a ball-handling cutter with some step-back ability and ball distribution skills, as highlighted by her 3 assists per game, but Tara looks a bit different in comparison. She’s listed as a guard, but given her size, she looks to operate a bit more inside the paint than a typical guard as evidenced by her 7.4 rebounds per game. Her size and skillset will present an interesting problem for the Zags that could spell a high minute game for Esther Little, who stands at 6’2” and is also listed as a guard, due to her defensive chops. The minute distribution could be interesting given Little’s recent move towards 6th person off the bench.
Other notable players from WSU include 5’8” junior guard Astera Tuhina who checks in third on the team with 8.7 points propelled by a team-high 39.3% three point shooting mark while also being the team’s leader in assists with 3.7 per game. Meanwhile, 6’6” sophomore Alex Covil is obviously very tall and I’m assuming that this must be at least part of the reason that she leads the team and WCC in blocks per game with 1.9.
There really aren’t many other players with stand-out numbers to highlight, but I’d expect Coach Kamie Ethridge to run a 7-8 player rotation, maybe 9, but likely nothing beyond. The Bulldogs will need to be prepared for a physical team that brings back some experienced players familiar with the Zags from years past that will want to see a repeat of when the Cougs traveled to Spokane in the fall of 2023 and beat Gonzaga in the McCarthey Center 77-72.
I’ll be hoping to see some of the recent positives we’ve seen the past two matches like the turnover reduction, improved passing & assist numbers, and a defense ready to hound their marks and keep the ball out of their hoop. Hit the comment thread below to share your thoughts on the court performance!