Top 10 Zags of the Decade: PART 2
Written by AFGZ   
Wednesday, 30 December 2009 21:03

An extremely successful decade of Gonzaga basketball is coming to a close this week. Gonzaga has gone from "where John Stockton played" to a "Cinderella" team to one of the most respected and successful college basketball programs in the country, no matter the the size of the school or mid major status. A Few Good Zags thought it was a good time to reflect back on the past 10 years by coming up with a Top 10 Zags of the Decade list.

This is PART 2 of our list. Click here for PART 1. To qualify, the player must have played a season from 2000-2009. Share your memories of these players here, or if you agree or disagree with their ranking.

 

MSantagelo

#5 Matt Santagelo

Gonzaga owes a great deal of its current success as a basketball program to the 98-99 Elite Eight team and 99-00 Sweet Sixteen team that put GU back on the college basketball map. The leader of those teams was PG Matt Santangelo, who comes in at #5 on our list.

Santangelo arrived in Spokane in 1995 but red-shirted that year. But for the following 4 years, he started nearly every game. In 96-97 he was the WCC Freshman of the Year, starting 25 of 27 games, while averaging 13 pts and 4.4 assists. The Zags had a winning record that year, but failed to make the postseason. Things would change the following year.

Santangelo is a guy you want on your side; he had great vision, he could score and he was a winner. He led his team to a state championship at Portland's Central Catholic his junior year in high school. At Gonzaga, he got the Zags back to the post season his sophomore year, with a trip the NIT. After that, we all know how things played out. Magical trips to the Elite Eight and Sweet Sixteen in back to back years, forever made Matt Santangelo a Gonzaga legend.

But he also has the stats to warrant his spot on our list. At a school that has been known for its great point guards, Matt is the career assists leader with 668. His senior season was also the best single season assist total (225) for a Gonzaga player. Matt also ranks 4th all-time in scoring and 3rd all-time in 3 pointers made. Throw in 3 First Team All-WCC nods, and you have quite a career. A career that should be recognized by seeing #13 hanging from the rafters of the MAC someday.

Season MPG PPG FG% 3FG% APG RPG
99-00 35.7 13.2 37.3 33.5 6.4 3.9
98-99 32.0 12.7 37.5 38.1 5.3 3.3
97-98 33.1 16.1 43.5 43.0 4.1 3.2
96-97 31.4 13.2 43.9 42.3 4.4 2.9

BStepp

#4 Blake Stepp

Blake Stepp comes in at #4 on our list of the top 10 Zags of the Decade. Blake started his career as a true freshman in the 2000-01 season when he was thrust into the starting lineup because of an injury to Dan Dickau. It was a fitting beginning to a great college career as he would average over 30 minutes per game for his whole tenure at GU. He is the only Zag to be named WCC Player of the Year twice, is 2nd all-time in assists and he is also the career leader in 3 pointers made.

As a freshman Blake averaged 31 minutes per game and scored a season high 21 points two separate times. With Dickau as his back-court running mate they led the zags to the sweet 16 eventually losing to Michigan State, who continued on to win the championship that year. As a sophomore Blake played with nagging injuries most of the season averaging 27 minutes with a season high 26 points and losing out in the first round of the NCAA tournament to Wyoming. As a junior Blake averaged a career high 36 minutes per game and 18 points per game. He scored a career high 34 points against Washington State days after a previous career high of 33 against Washington. The 2003-04 season ended against Arizona in overtime in the second round of the NCAA tournament, in a game that is still played on ESPN Classic. As a senior Blake finished his career at Gonzaga on a high note. He was named to the 2004 All-American 2nd Team by averaging nearly 15 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists per game, while leading Gonzaga to its sixth consecutive NCAA appearance.

Season MPG PPG FG% 3FG% APG RPG
03-04 34.4 14.6 43.1 37.6 6.7 4.6
02-03 35.5 18.0 43.1 40.3 6.0 3.7
01-02 26.6 9.2 39.1 35.6 3.9 3.8
00-01 30.9 10.3 39.8 37.6 3.5 3.6

RTuriaf

#3 Ronny Turiaf

Ronny Turiaf came to Gonzaga from France (via Martinique) as an athletic, but raw, power forward that instantly energized Gonzaga fans with explosive dunks his freshman season. Ronny averaged at least 15 PPG, 6 RPG, and 1.5 BPG during his sophomore, junior, and senior seasons as he transformed from an energy player to an offensive force down low for Gonzaga, and would leave Gonzaga as the fourth leading scorer and rebounder in school history.

In his junior season, Turiaf led the Zags to a #2 seed in the NCAA tournament. However, early foul trouble forced Turiaf to watch helplessly from the sidelines as Gonzaga was upset by Nevada. Despite rumors that he would be a first round pick in the NBA draft after his junior season, Turiaf decided to return to Gonzaga. "I am looking forward to finishing what I have started, both on and off the court. Having the opportunity to graduate next year and wear the Gonzaga uniform for one more season is an opportunity I cannot pass up" Turiaf said.

In his senior season, Turiaf was named the WCC player of the year and led Gonzaga back to the NCAA tournament. Once again, however, Turiaf's season would end in the second round of the tournament, as the Zags would lose to Texas Tech.

Ronny ended up being drafted in the 2nd round of the NBA draft by the Lakers. Before his rookie season started, doctors found an enlarged aortic root in his heart, which required open heart surgery to repair. Ronny did not let this setback end his dream of the NBA. He recovered quicker than expected and ended up playing 23 games for the Lakers that year, proving how big of a heart he really has.

Ronny was a fan favorite and always will be. He was such a great ambassador for the school, showing up at all of the other sporting events and other campus events, with a great personality and energy. If you catch one of his NBA games, you can tell he is still the same lovable guy.

Season MPG PPG FG% 3FG% RPG BPG
04-05 31.2 15.9 50.8 28.6 9.5 1.9
03-04 26.9 15.5 52.5 33.3 6.4 1.5
02-03 24.7 15.6 51.9 16.7 6.2 1.5
01-02 19.5 7.3 52.5 0.0 5.0 0.8

DDickau

#2 Dan Dickau

Daniel David Dickau is our #2 Zag of the Decade, while only playing 2 seasons for Gonzaga. Dickau played his first 2 years of college ball at Washington. Things weren't working out for him at UDub, so he transferred to GU where he had to sit out a year.

DDD made an immediate impact in his first season for Gonzaga and became one of the all-time fan favorites. Despite an early season finger injury that kept him out of 9 games, Dan averaged 19 points per games and 6 assists per game while shooting 48% from beyond the arc. He had 10 games of 20 or more points including a 39 point effort vs Santa Clara. Dickau, teamed with senior Casey Calvary and a freshman Blake Stepp led Gonzaga to another trip to the Sweet 16, losing to eventual national champion, Michigan State.

It was the 2001-2002 season, Dickau's senior year, that Gonzaga became more than just a late season bracket buster, but started getting respect in the polls. The team went 29-4 and was ranked as high as #6 in the AP poll. Dickau had one of the best seasons in Gonzaga history, averaging 21 points, nearly 5 assists, and hitting a single season GU record 117 three pointers. The high ranking and regular season success did not carry over to the post season though. The #6 seeded Bulldogs were upset in the first round of the NCAA tourney by the Wyoming Cowboys. Dickau had 26 points, but it came on 7-24 shooting.

While his career at GU did not end the way he would have liked, he did have one of the best individual seasons at Gonzaga ever. He was named WCC player of the year and was also the second Zag ever picked as a First Team All American. Dan was then drafted with the 28th pick in the 1st round of the NBA draft, the first Gonzaga player this decade to be drafted. Dan Dickau definitely left his mark at Gonzaga in the 2 years he played in Spokane. If he would have went there to start with, he may have ended up #1 on this list.

Season MPG PPG FG% 3FG% APG RPG
01-02 34.7 21.0 44.1 45.7 4.7 3.0
00-01 33.7 18.9 48.5 48.0 6.3 3.3

AMorrison

#1 Adam Morrison

Adam Morrison arrived at Gonzaga University from nearby Mead high school, in Spokane, as a relatively unknown recruit outside of Spokane. However, his impact at Gonzaga was felt immediately. Morrison made the first shot he ever took, a baseline jumper, against St. Joseph in Madison Square Garden, and seemed to make most of the shots he took after that during his three year career at Gonzaga.

In his freshman year, Morrison quickly became the first player off the bench for the Zags and averaged 11.4 ppg on one of the best teams in Gonzaga history, that included Blake Stepp, Ronny Turiaf, and Cory Violette. Morrison's freshman season ended as the #2 seeded Zags were upset by Nevada in the second round.

As a sophomore, Morrison averaged 19 points per game and led Gonzaga in scoring. He finished the season blazing hot, scoring 25 and 30 points against San Diego and St. Marys respectively, to win the WCC tournament for Gonzaga, and then scored 27 and 25 points against Winthrop and Texas Tech in the NCAA tournament. Once again, however, Gonzaga lost in the second round, this time in a heart breaker to Texas Tech.

After his sophomore season, there were talks that Morrison could take his game to the NBA. But Morrison elected to come back for his junior year at Gonzaga to take care of some unfinished business.

Morrison's junior season was unquestionably the best single season by a player in the last decade of Gonzaga basketball. Morrison led the nation in scoring at 28.1 ppg. Highlights of Morrison's junior season include scoring 43 points in a thrilling triple overtime victory against Michigan State, a last second banked in game winning 3 pointer against Oklahoma State in the Battle in Seattle, and three other 40 plus point games during WCC play.

In the NCAA tournament, Morrison finally led Gonzaga back to the sweet 16 to face UCLA. In that game, Gonzaga found themselves up big early, and Gonzaga fans were already dreaming of a trip to the final four. Unfortunately, UCLA came out of nowhere to win 73-71, and Morrison was left crying on the floor. While this scene is painful for Gonzaga fans, it is indicative of Morrison's career at Gonzaga: his will and desire to win was second to no one.

Morrison was selected as a first team All American and was the National Association of Basketball Coaches co-player of the year with J.J. Redick. Morrison declared for the NBA draft after his junior year as the third leading scorer in Gonzaga history, despite playing only three seasons, and was drafted with the third pick overall in the 2006 NBA draft by the Charlotte Bobcats. While Morrison's pro career has been hindered by injuries, he is unquestionably the greatest Gonzaga player of the last decade, and his junior season will go down as one of the greatest seasons in NCAA history.

Season MPG PPG FG% 3FG% APG RPG
05-06 36.5 28.1 49.6 42.8 1.8 5.5
04-05 34.2 19.0 49.8 31.1 2.8 5.5
03-04 20.8 11.4 53.1 30.4 1.4 4.3

 



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Comments (3)Add Comment
...
written by JR, December 31, 2009
With all the nostalgia going around as the year comes to a close, ESPN analysts have been rehashing their memories form the past decades. There has been a lot written about runs into the NCAA tourney by mid-majors...with no mention of Gonzaga's runs early in the '00's. Is there a reason behind this or is the early '00 magic just long forgotten?
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written by JRillie, December 31, 2009
I think that at this juncture the majority of talking-heads don't consider Gonzaga a "mid-major" any longer. The continuous success has transformed the program, however the lack of NCAA tournament success has dimmed the excellence of the Zags throughout the decade.
...
written by PJWal87, January 08, 2010
Got the chills reading those top few! Good post!

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