The Gonzaga Bulldogs (8-3) are set to host one last nonconference game at the McCarthey Athletic Center this season when the Bucknell Bison (4-7) pay a visit to Spokane on Saturday.
Coming off consecutive losses to Kentucky and UConn, the Zags entered the week with ample opportunities to get back in the win column before heading out on the road once again for one more nonleague game against UCLA on Dec. 28. Mark Few and company took advantage of a season-high 25 points from Braden Huff, parlayed it with a 20-point outing from Graham Ike and came out with a 102-72 victory over Nicholls on Wednesday in their first home game in 28 days. On a short turnaround, they’ll prepare to take on a Bison squad that’s been sitting on a 5-game losing streak since its last contest on Dec. 8 — a 74-70 overtime loss at Radford.
The Bison entered the 2024-25 campaign with expectations to compete for the Patriot League regular season title after finishing tied for second in the conference standings last season. Second-year head coach John Griffin returned six of his top seven scorers from that 20-win squad, including 7-foot-tall junior Noah Williamson. The Latvian center is second on his team in scoring at 13.4 points and is adept at applying foul pressure — Williamson averages 7.1 free throws and is top 20 in the country in fouls drawn per 40 minutes, per KenPom.
Senior guard Josh Bascoe paces the Bison with 14.1 points and 3.8 assists per game. The 6-foot-tall Canadian also rips down 4.7 rebounds per game. Senior forward Ian Motta is third on the team in points per game (10.1) though he hasn’t played in the team’s last three contests.
For the Bulldogs, five players average 10 or more points through nonleague play, paced by Ike at 14.6 points. The 6-foot-9 forward also leads the way in rebounds (6.9 per game) and at the charity stripe, where he’s 50-for-66 (75.8%) on free throw attempts this season. Per KenPom, Ike draws the second-most fouls per 40 minutes (8.9) behind only Florida State’s Jamir Watkins (9.2).
Senior guard Ryan Nembhard has recorded the most assists (113) and boasts the top assist-per-game average (10.3) in the country through the first 11 games of the season. Nembhard recorded his sixth double-double of the 2024-25 campaign in an 18-point, 10-assist effort in the win over Nicholls. For reference, he had seven double-doubles in the first three seasons of his career.
Saturday’s game will be televised on KHQ/SWX in the Spokane area, however, due to blackout restrictions, fans in the local region can watch on swxlocalsports.com. Seattle fans can watch on FOX13+ (also known as KZJO). Read the note below for more information on blackout listings.
HOW TO WATCH GONZAGA VS. BUCKNELL
Who: Gonzaga and Nicholls square off in the first meeting between the two schools
When: 6 p.m. PT/9 p.m. EST | Saturday, Dec. 21
Where: McCarthey Athletic Center
TV: ESPN+ (Out of region) KHQ/SWX (Spokane region*) FOX13+ (Seattle) FOX12+ (Portland)
KenPom’s projection: Gonzaga 88, Nicholls 60
*Spokane, Yakima, Tri-Cities, Eastern Washington, Coeur d’Alene and North Idaho, Missoula, Great Falls, Butte, Bozeman and Helena will experience blackouts on KHQ/SWX broadcasts. Fans in these areas can watch at swxlocalsports.com.
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