No. 15 Gonzaga withstood an offensive barrage from Alabama star freshman Brandon Miller on Saturday to escape with an 100-90 win in the C.M. Newton Legacy Classic in Birmingham, Alabama. Miller scored a career-high 36 points for the No. 4-ranked Crimson Tide with 26 coming in the second half, but Drew Timme and a balanced attack from the Bulldogs had an answer for everything the Crimson Tide threw their way.
Timme led No. 15 Gonzaga with 29 points and 10 rebounds as the Zags overcame an early nine-point deficit to pick up a much-needed marquee win before West Coast Conference play begins at the end of this month. The loss was just the second of the season for the Crimson Tide, who have been among the most impressive squads in the country this season even while relying heavily on freshmen.
Defensive struggles and turnover woes doomed Alabama against the Zags. The Crimson Tide turned it over a season-high 21 times, leading to 23 points for Gonzaga. Though Timme was the star for the Bulldogs, six Gonzaga players reached double figures. The Bulldogs' 57.1% shooting from the field far surpassed Alabama's previous season-worst defensive field goal percentage of 43.3%.
Gonzaga lands parting shot
After losses to Texas, Purdue and Baylor amid one of the nation's toughest non conference schedules, Gonzaga needed this win to cement its place on the national radar prior to the forthcoming doldrums of its annually weak WCC schedule. The victory amounts to a parting shot for Zags directed at the rest of the country as the Bulldogs prepare to disappear into oblivion for a few months. With games against Montana and Eastern Oregon all that's left for the Zags before league play begins, we might not hear much from this team until the postseason arrives.
But it will be hard to sleep on this team after what it showed against Alabama. The offensive efficiency Gonzaga unleashed made the Crimson Tide's defense look like a lower-tier WCC team and not the nation's No. 4 squad. Gonzaga will have some work to do if it wants to secure its fourth consecutive No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, but Saturday's outcome goes a long way toward keeping that possibility in the cards.
Timme gets help
While Timme's performance stood out as he tied his season-high for points and produced his third double-double of the year, it was the help he received that made the difference. With secondary stars such as Andrew Nembhard and Chet Holmgren departed from last season's team, the Bulldogs have been trying to nail down roles and rotations early this season.
Senior forward Anton Watson chipped in a season-high 17 points against Alabama, but two guards came up huge in the second half. Malachi Smith and Nolan Hickman combined to make 8 of 10 attempts from the field in the half as the Zags answered the bell each time Alabama tried to mount a rally. When Gonzaga's other weapons are clicking, it makes double-teaming Timme impractical, and that makes guarding the Zags basically impossible.
Miller's explosion
When Alabama rallied from a 15-point deficit to knock off then-No. 1 Alabama last week, it did so without Miller making a single shot from the floor. But on Saturday, he showed why he is considered the nation's No. 1 freshman so far this season by CBS Sports. Miller drilled a pair of 3-pointers in the game's opening minutes as Alabama opened up its early lead.
Then, after going quiet for most of the rest of the half, Miller exploded in the second half. He scored 10 points in the first four minutes of the half and produced 26 of the Crimson Tide's 48 second-half points. While Miller's 6 of 11 shooting from beyond the arc stood out, the 6-foot-9 wing also flashed the ability to finish in transition and as a penetrator. Miller possesses similarities to Jabari Smith, who captivated the nation last season at Auburn and became an NBA Draft lottery pick because of his unique combination of length and shooting acumen.
Miller is a tad shorter than Smith but similarly versatile and perhaps even more adept at putting his head down and getting into the paint when outside shots are not available. His offensive performance against Gonzaga won't be forgotten anytime soon, even though it came in defeat.