Gonzaga survived Pacific 71-62 on Saturday night in the Kennel, leaning once again on Graham Ike and a timely bench performance from Davis Fogle. And survived is the key word, here. Ike finished with another 20-point night, continuing a dominant conference stretch, while Fogle poured in 18 points off the bench in 28 minutes, his second-highest workload of the season.
It was also another stellar night from Emmanuel Innocenti who stayed on the floor for a team high 34 minutes, bringing his usual defensive effort to the table and matching that with 13 points, shooting 2-for-3 from outside. He’s now averaging 13.6 points and 36.3 minutes per night over the last three games, and more and more recently he’s been the guys the Zags have leaned on to make things happen when the frontcourt struggles. The dude’s answered the call and if he can keep it up the Zags offense opens up immeasurably.
Besides that, though, for long stretches, the Zags looked flat-footed and disjointed, struggling to generate reliable half-court offense and failing to convert in transition or at the free throw line, leaving themselves vulnerable to a Pacific team that looked confident and disciplined.
Under first-year head coach Dave Smart, the Tigers entered the night sitting fourth in the WCC behind Gonzaga, Santa Clara, and Saint Mary’s.
The Tigers’ in-game metrics on the season undersell how disruptive they can be when things are clicking, and this game followed that pattern, turning into a grind that may have exposed Gonzaga’s narrow offensive pathways when Ike spends a first half 15 feet away from the rim, clanging threes off the front iron (he finished 0-for-6 on the night) and arguing foul calls with refs.
It was a win the hard way. A back-and-forth slugfest with bad offense, a lot of free throws (45 total on the night), and some very solid defense from both teams throughout. With a rematch against Portland looming and a quick turnaround before heading to Moraga to face Saint Mary’s, Gonzaga left the floor with good results in hand but some tough questions to answer, and fast.
First half
Coach Mark Few once again opened with Mario Saint-Supery at point guard over Braeden Smith, marking the second straight start for “El Prncipito” since WCC play began. Pacific signaled its offensive priorities immediately by running actions through Elias Ralph on the perimeter, while Gonzaga countered by putting Emmanuel Innocenti on him and leaning on perimeter pressure, resulting in two shot-clock violations in the first four minutes.
Their defensive gameplan was even clearer. Pacific succeeded in keeping Gonzaga’s bigs off the low block, forcing Graham Ike and Jalen Warley into short midrange attempts (to mixed results). Davis Fogle and Tyon Grant-Foster checked in at the five-minute mark for Innocenti and Adam Miller as Gonzaga struggled to find an offensive foothold, opening 2-for-6 from the field and 2-for-6 at the line. Braeden Smith replaced Saint-Supery shortly after, but moved the needle minimally and Gonzaga stuck at 2-for-8 shooting.
Despite continued defensive activity and consistent foul pressure, Gonzaga remained stiff offensively. Ismaila Diagne came in for Ike as the Bulldogs cut the deficit to two, though the shooting issues persisted at 4-for-15. Fogle provided a lift with a quick seven points, trimming the margin to one at 16-15 Pacific.
Perimeter defense tightened further with Innocenti, Smith, and Grant-Foster on the floor, though missed free throws continued to cap momentum, with Gonzaga at 4-for-9 from the line inside the final six minutes of the half. While Innocenti successfully held Ralph in check, Pacific leaned heavily on Justin Rochelin, who accounted for nine of the Tigers’ first 20 points and eight of their first 16 rebounds.
The game remained tight down the stretch of the half. Pacific tied it with 3:30 left, Innocenti answered, and a Jaden Clayton three pushed the Tigers back in front, 27-24, with Gonzaga sitting at a dismal 9-for-26 from the field. Saint-Supery tied the game at 29 with a transition finish, and a Pacific turnover on the final possession sent both teams to the locker room tied at 29, with Gonzaga carrying a rough shooting line alongside some strong defensive stats, including 11 forced turnovers, four forced shot-clock violations, and no one except Adam Miiller playing with more than one foul.
At halftime, Rochelin had out-rebounded Graham Ike, Jalen Warley, Ismaila Diagne, and Grant-Foster combined, and finished just one point shy of a 20 minute double-double. The question going into the second was whether foul trouble and depth would catch up with Pacific and whether the Zags could generate some offense from anyone not named Davis Fogle.
Second half
Gonzaga opened the half by finally getting Graham Ike a touch that resulted in points, scoring off a possession extended by two offensive rebounds after a missed three, though it also pushed him to 0-for-4 on the night and underscored how rarely the Bulldogs were feeding him on the block. Pacific answered with a pair of threes to retake the lead. Adam Miller knocked down a three of his own and cut it to one, and Gonzaga briefly retook the lead at 36-35 before Ike drew contact at the rim, argued for a call, picked up a technical, and went to the bench. Ike picked up a technical foul for jawing at a ref and although we won’t know what was said, it looked pretty soft.
After Diagne picked up a quick foul contesting a shot in the lane, there was a very un-Zag moment here where he and Tyon ended up shouting at each other over a blown defensive assignment but Braeden Smith was able to intervene and re-steady the ship. With whistles stacking up on both sides, the game stayed tight. Ike missed another three, pushing his total to 0-for-5 on the night, and Ralph slipped behind the defense for a dunk that put Pacific back up two.
Fogle moved into the lead scorer role after another pair of free throws, giving him 15 as Gonzaga led by five. Ike drew a charge, Innocenti drew one at the rim on the other end, and Gonzaga entered the double bonus and saddled Pacific’s Isaac Jack and TJ Wainwright with four fouls apiece. Jalen Warley briefly checked in for the Zags at this point before heading back to the bench, his thigh bruise clearly still limiting him and perhaps even more than it has been in recent games.
With three minutes left, Ike scored again on a turnaround for his 20th point, pushing the lead to nine and setting the program record for consecutive 20-point games, passing Adam Morrison and Derek Raivio (I was shocked by that one, too) . Pacific went to a full-court press inside a minute remaining and although Justin Rochelin dominated the first half, he was held to his only three points of the second half in a key and-one play.
Pacific missed a late three, fouled quickly, and Fogle split a pair to make it a three-possession game. After two (unbelievably badly) missed free throws on the other end from KC Ibekwe, Fogle added two more for his 18th points as Gonzaga closed out a 71-62 win.
Final thoughts
This was a win, but it was an ugly one. Ike’s 20-point night and Fogle’s 18 off the bench can’t really reflect how hard it was for Gonzaga to generate clean offense for large stretches, or how close this game sat to tipping the wrong way if a few possessions broke differently. If there’s one stat that sticks out like a sore thumb on the box score it’s assists. Gonzaga finished with just seven 24 shots; a new season low. It was a rough night for Mario Saint-Supery who finished 1-for-7 from the field and chipped in just one assist, but he also led all Zags with six rebounds (five defensive, one offensive).
Pacific showed a clear blueprint for making Gonzaga uncomfortable. Keep Graham Ike off the low block, force him into midrange jumpers, bait him into shooting threes, control the defensive glass, neutralize the playmaking opportunities for our point guards, and live with the results elsewhere.
But the biggest takeaway sits on the opposite bench. Dave Smart coached the hell out of this game. Unfortunately, his plan did not account for Gonzaga’s defense, which forced 15 turnovers and held the Tigers to 38% shooting on the night. Once again, the credit there is due to Innocenti’s awareness, anticipation, physicality, and otherworldly ability to just take individual opponents out of the offense completely.
Gonzaga now hosts Portland on February 25, a rematch against the only WCC team that has beaten them this season. If tonight’s matchup with the Tigers felt flat, it’s hopefully because the Zags have their eyes set on some mid-week vengeance. Either way, the tape from this game will travel, and Gonzaga will have to answer for it soon with Saint Mary’s in Moraga on the 28th. The Zags will have to snap back into it, and quickly, if they want to own the conference outright before Selection Sunday.