Mark Few and the Gonzaga Bulldogs will make one final trip to San Francisco to take on the Dons before leaving the WCC to join the new-look Pac-12 in 2026-27.
And, just like they have the past two years, the Zags will face USF at the Chase Center instead of at War Memorial on San Francisco’s campus.
Gonzaga (25-2, 13-1) currently boasts a 34-game winning streak over San Francisco dating back to 2012, although there have been plenty of close calls – including three weeks ago when the Dons came to Spokane and lost by just two, 68-66, after forward Barry Wang’s three-point attempt fell off the rim.
The Zags were missing not only Braden Huff in that game but Graham Ike as well, who was sitting for the third game in a row with ankle soreness. Ike returned the following game against Saint Mary’s and has been an absolute star since then, averaging 26.7 points and 9.3 rebounds over the last seven games while shooting 69.4% on twos and 53.8% (7-13) from three.
San Francisco (15-13, 7-8) does not have much interior post presence, which will make handling Ike especially tough. The Dons did out-rebound Gonzaga in Spokane, 41-37, but average just 36.8 rebounds and 3.0 blocks per game on the year – which rank 114th and 235th in the nation, respectively.
Gonzaga will rely heavily on Ike for offense in this game, especially with Jalen Warley, who had 19 points on 7-10 shooting against the Dons in January, nursing a thigh injury that has limited his effectiveness in Gonzaga’s last four games.
Gonzaga Bulldogs guard Jalen Warley (8). | Photo by Erik Smith
For Gonzaga to secure a Quad 2 road victory on Wednesday, it’ll need to do a much better job defending the perimeter. USF shot a ridiculous 14-28 (50%) from three in Spokane on Jan. 24. It is the most threes Gonzaga has allowed this year and one of just two games where the Zags allowed an opponent to shoot 50% or higher from three, with the other coming in Corvallis against Oregon State on Feb. 7.
Gonzaga has three more conference games after San Francisco, hosting Pacific and Portland in Spokane before closing out the regular season in Moraga against Saint Mary’s on Feb. 28.
Below is a look at how to watch Wednesday’s matchup between Gonzaga and San Francisco:How to watch Gonzaga vs. San Francisco
Date:Â Wednesday, Feb. 18
Game time: 8:00 p.m. PT
Where: Chase Center (San Francisco, CA)
How to watch: ESPN2
How to stream: Fubo (start your free trial)
How to listen: 96.1 FM (local) and Varsity Sports App
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