Will Wade called himself dumb for scheduling Gonzaga.
Perhaps.
What we know is that LSU is taking a massive step up in class after three 40-plus-point victories in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center to begin the season.
Mark Few’s Gonzaga program is a well-oiled machine. The Bulldogs have won at least 25 games in 19 straight seasons.
LSU has won 25 three times this century.
Ultimately, this will be a great litmus test for where this LSU team is in mid-November. That doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a great barometer for what the middle of February will look like. If the Tigers hold their own or win, they’re to be taken very seriously moving forward.
If things get away in Spokane, that’s not a death sentence. It just means this cobbled-together group needs more time to gel. And Gonzaga is really good.
Gonzaga scored a season-opening win against Purdue. That dropped the Boilermakers out of the Coaches Poll.
Tipoff Saturday is at 2:30 p.m. CST on USA Network. Despite the game being played off campus in downtown Spokane, it will count as a true road game for LSU’s metrics.
BIG BULLDOGS
Gonzaga is huge.
7-foot-1 Massamba Diop is the starting five-man. 6-foot-10 Braden Huff will start opposite Diop. Izan Almansa played 29 minutes against Purdue. He’s also 6-foot-10.
They beat Purdue on the boards, 34-31, and Purdue has 7-foot-4 Daniel Jacobson on the block.
LSU’s Brice Dessert and Michael Ruzic will have their hands full with this front line. It’s also an intimidating group to drive into for sub-6-foot-5 guards like Donovan Dent and Skyy Clark.
WING WAR
I cannot wait to watch Saliou Niang guard Davis Fogle. Both guys are about 6-foot-7, and they’ll battle on the wing for the majority of the game.
Fogle dropped 22 on Purdue, showing the ability to knock down the three-ball, attack the rim and finish very creatively despite average athleticism.
Niang is going to be LSU’s defensive stopper. I’m not sure if Wade will apply full-court pressure against a veteran Gonzaga team that likes to run. If he does, Niang will head the press, but he should back up and take Fogle in the half court.
Mo Dioubate will probably draw the assignment now and again, as well, so it should be a heck of a matchup.
Gonzaga has other scoring options like former McDonald’s All-American guard Isiah Harwell, but Fogle is the first option LSU needs to limit.
THREES PLEASE
LSU has to shoot the ball well to win this game. Gonzaga is going to score. The Zags have always been elite on offense under Few.
To keep up, LSU will have to score with them. That’s unlikely to come from Dessert, and the guards aren’t going to have a ton of success at the rim unless they’re drawing fouls.
That means some long balls are going to have to splash. The Tigers need three or four from Abdi Bashir, two or three from Clark, one or two from Dent and probably nine or 11 total.
There has been a lid on the bucket in the PMAC. Maybe a trip west will open things up for a team that I think is going to shoot it better than the 27% clip they’ve shown through three games.
