Maui Invitational Team Preview

Colorado Buffaloes

Monday at noon PST the Zags will take on the Colorado Buffaloes.  This will be Colorado's first true test as their first three games featured Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Coppin State, and Texas Southern.  This matchup will also present a unique challenge to GU, as Colorado coach Jeff Bzdelik employs his version of the Princeton offense.

"Early early morning. Maui baby!" Matt Bouldin's (@mattbouldin15) tweet, early Saturday morning, signaled that the Gonzaga players and coaches were up early and on their way to Maui shortly after dismantling IPFW on Friday night.

Demetri Goodson said that he was looking forward to the trip, and that this would be his first time in Maui. Goodson confessed, however, that he would not be venturing far from the shore into the Pacific Ocean due to a fear of sharks.

What We Learned (4th Row Edition):

Box Score

Games like this are painful to watch.  The ending is never in doubt, it's just a matter of how pretty the story is going to be.  It took IPFW over 8 minutes to score their first basket, and it was over long before that as the Zags were on cruise control all night.

Gonzaga Bulldogs vs. Indiana-Purdue-Fort Wayne Mastadons (IPFW)

Friday, November 20 - 6 p.m. PST
McCarthey Athletic Center

What 2 Watch 4:

1) Bench Players: Few used an 8 man rotation against Michigan State, favoring Olynyk as a backup at the 3/4, Foster as the backup down low, and GJ as a backup to Meech. Manny and Poling saw very limited playing time and Gibbs did not even get off the bench. Look for Few to get all of the bench players more time today as they attempt to earn the right to more playing time in Maui. Also, we are still waiting to see Bol Kong play his first game for GU, but we are hearing that he will likely remain in street clothes today.

Next up in our previews is Andy Poling.

In 2006, Andy Poling was one of the top recruits on the West Coast.  By the time Poling finally arrived on the GU campus in 2008, a lot had changed.  Throughout his junior season Poling battled illness and what he calls "food intolerance" that caused him to lose nearly 30 lbs.  Poling, at 6'11" out of Portland, has seemingly figured out his health condition and looks to help the Zags this coming season.

Poling's skill-set is reminiscent of both Zach Gourde and Sean Mallon.  He's lanky and crafty in the low block, but lacks the upper body strength that would really allow him to be a force in the paint.  Andy showed an ability to put up points against good competition, as he averaged over 17 ppg. in the Portland Metro League as a senior.  Undoubtedly, Andy has the ability to score with his back to the basket but his development has been slowed due to his illness.  Poling also has the ability to step out and hit the fifteen foot jumper which will make him more of a threat from the high-post.

Poling's problem this year will be getting minutes.  As we've seen through the first two games and the exhibition game, Poling seems to be behind both the starters as well as Kelly Olynyk and Will Foster on the depth chart.  When Poling is on the floor, look for a nice jump hook and a good turn and face game from the block.  Poling's time at Gonzaga will assuredly come in the next three years as his game and strength both develop.

As players pass through the Gonzaga program, we get to watch them play for 4 years, watch them become men and we get to know a ton about them as basketball players and people. At the end of the 4 years, only a select few get to go on to play in the NBA, where it is easy to keep tabs on them. For the rest, many go on to play professionally in other countries where we don't get to see them on TV and have to rely on websites in foreign languages to keep up on their careers.

A Few Good Zags went ahead and collected all the information you'll need for reconnecting with your old favorites.Continue reading for an update on the Zags (not former Zags, because once a Zag always a Zag) currently playing abroad.

UPDATED Stats shown are for this season as of 12/6/09

Jeremy Pargo : Hapoel Galil-Elyon- Israeli League (Ligat Winner)

Pargo had a chance to get drafted in late 2nd round of last summer's NBA draft, but no team took a flyer on him. He signed on late with the Piston's Vegas Summer League team, averaging 10 pts and 3 assists in 3 games, but they did not have a roster spot available. That meant it was time to consider his European options. Pargo ended up signing with Israeli team Hapoel Galil-Elyon. So far so good for Jeremy in the Middle East. He is 2nd in the league in scoring through 4 games at 23.8 pts/game. A successful rookie year as a professional could land him an audition for a NBA team this summer.

Click here for full stats

Box Score

What We Learned:

For the first time in a number of years, the Bulldogs have legitimate offensive threats in the low block.  Sacre showed off exactly what we were looking for on the offensive end.  His bread and butter is the turn-around jumper from five feet; but he also showed the ability to finish with either hand with a soft baby-hook.  ELIAS HARRIS.  Looking at the box score you see 6-16 from the field.  He was damn near dominant and even though he put up sixteen shots very few seemed forced or truly out of the flow of the offense; he even showed an ability to step out and hit the three.  Harris is going to develop into a go to star by the end of this season.

This IS a big game for the Zags.  More than just a barometer for where the Bulldogs are, this is a chance to knock off the number 2 ranked team in the country.  Here's what to watch for:

1) Can GU establish a low post game with Rob Sacre and Elias Harris?  If the Bulldogs are able to get early buckets in the paint against MSU's relatively young big men that should open up the floor for the shooters and get the Zags vital open looks from 3.

2) Injuries - Michigan State has a number of key contributors with nagging injuries as was mentioned in the post below by MTR.  If MSU is not at full strength look for the Zags to push the tempo and be physical.  If the Zags can control the tempo and play their game this will be a battle.

3) Will Matt Bouldin show up?  Matt has a history of not bringing his A-game when it comes to marquee match-ups.  Bouldin needs to step up and bring both senior leadership and a quality game.

4) Finally, who controls the perimeter?  If the Zags are out-physicalled by the strong athletic Spartan guards this could get ugly in a hurry.  The Zags need to force tough out-of-rhythm jumpers on defense and not help so much if they go zone.  On the offensive end, two guards need to have big games for the Zags to prevail in this one.

Zags are 4-12 against top-5 teams...

Gonzaga fans are not the only ones excited for ESPN's marquee match-up of Gonzaga versus top ranked Michigan State (#2 AP, #2 ESPN/USA Today) tonight.

Said Michigan State guard, and Big 10 player of the year Kalin Lucas, "I can't wait, it will be a big game."

Mark Few knows that taking his young team to East Lansing this early in the season to face Tom Izzo's Spartans will be no easy task.

On Monday, Few noted that, "it's definitely not what a young team needs right now, that's going to be the hard part about it. We just need to go back there, compete and get after them and look at this as an opportunity."

Our next preview focuses on Grant Gibbs.

Gibbs is a 6'5" combo guard coming to the Zags out of Iowa.   Gibbs is a redshirt freshman this season and will likely be a good role player for the Bulldogs this season. Grant has a good basketball IQ and will make the Zags a better team.  Prior to deciding on Gonzaga, Gibbs had offers from schools in the Big-10 and the Big 12.

In high school, Gibbs was a point guard who put up solid numbers and led his teams deep into the state playoffs.  He was injured in the second half of his senior season as he was undercut going up for a dunk.  Grant was injured again shortly after arriving on campus last fall.  A shoulder injury seriously set back his development and his ability to fully adjust to the college game.  With all the injuries it has been difficult to get a good read on what exactly the Bulldogs are going to get out of Gibbs.

Without question, Grant will be used exclusively off the bench this season as the depth at guard just doesn't leave room for him to get a big chunk of minutes.  Gibbs has shown an ability to  handle the ball as well as having a nice shooting stroke.  The key for Gibbs will be developing confidence shooting the ball.  He is athletic but will not blow by defenders and will likely struggle creating off the dribble.  Look for Gibbs to find open jumpers by coming off of screens and using the offense to get good looks.

If Grant can find his stroke look for him to take on a  Kyle Bankhead type role where he is a light's out three point shooter, but he will also have enoough athleticism to handle the ball and be a threat at any point on the offensive end.

You can follow Grant Gibbs on Twitter at: DoubleGfor3

Player Preview Library

Mangisto Arop

Kelly Olynyk

Elias Harris

G.J. Vilarino