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October 18th,
2006
By Joel Welser
Broadcast Basketball
Gonzaga
Bulldogs
Overall Rank:
#25
Conference
Rank: #1 WCC
2005-06:
29-4, 14-0, 1st
2005-06
postseason: NCAA
 Sure the top two
scorers from last year’s
Gonzaga team are gone, but the next six
are back. If Adam Morrison wouldn’t have left after his junior
campaign for the NBA, this group would be looking at top five
expectations right about now. Without Morrison the Bulldogs
take a slight hit in preseason predictions, but it’s not going
to be as bad as some may think.
Who’s Out:
It
may not appear as big of a loss as Morrison’s 28.1 points per
game, but the absence of J.P. Batista may hurt just as much.
The big Brazilian averaged 19.3 points and 9.4 rebounds per game
and that’s a tough duo to replace. Erroll Knight was a quality
option off the bench and the guard averaged 2.6 points and 2.3
rebounds on the season. Fellow guards Colin Floyd, Nathan
Doudney and Stephen Gentry have run out of eligibility and won’t
be playing for the Zags for the 2006-2007 campaign.
Who’s In:
The
frontcourt needs some depth and the Bulldogs won’t waste any
time developing freshmen to help out in the paint. David
Burgess, a transfer from BYU, battled injuries throughout his
time with the Cougars. The 6-10 center won’t wow anybody with
his athleticism, but has the skills to be very effective on both
ends of the floor once he is eligible at the semester break.
Theo Davis may be listed as a freshman, but after a long journey
through the not so fun side of going to college, the 6-9 forward
finally landed at Gonzaga. Davis has the athleticism to
contribute immediately, but could add a little more strength
before enduring an entire season of division one hoops.
Abdullahi Kuso averaged 8.5 points and 6.5 boards as a sophomore
at Tallahassee Community College in Florida. The 6-9 Nigerian
will use his experience to battle for minutes, but is still a
raw talent that needs to work on his offensive game. Kuso’s
rebounding skills are probably the best on the team and that
will help replace one part of Batista’s game. Will Foster is
the lone incoming freshman big man and the 7-3 center will have
to wait his turn before becoming a force for GU. Micah Downs
and Matt Bouldin solidify an already deep backcourt. Downs, who
will be eligible at the semester break, averaged 4.3 points in
15 games for Kansas last year. Despite the limited playing time
for the Jayhawks, the McDonald’s All-American is expected to
make a big contribution for the Bulldogs. It may take a few
weeks for the Kirkland, Washington native to get adjusted to the
game once he becomes eligible on December 16th, but
by March he’ll work his way into the regular rotation. Bouldin,
an incoming freshman combo guard, is a great outside shooter and
a solid distributor and is too good to leave on the bench for
long.
Who to Watch:
Derek
Raivio will be looked to for the team leadership role this
year. The 6-3 senior guard averaged 11.1 points and 2.8 assists
last year, but spent most of the season struggling to find his
shot. He’ll have to regain his touch in order to lead the Zags
past the first weekend of tournament play. Jeremy Pargo may be
too talented to leave on the bench, and that raises all sorts of
questions. Now as a sophomore, Pargo has the experience to run
the point and he could do it effectively. That would allow
Raivio to concentrate on his scoring from the two guard spot and
help replace all the scoring that Gonzaga lost over the summer,
however that experiment didn’t help Raivio much last year.
Pierre Marie Altidor-Cespedes started 31 games last year and
averaged 4.2 points and 2.8 assists. With the development of
players like Larry Gurganios and David Pendergraft,
Altidor-Cespedes may find more time on the bench this year.
Pendergraft played as an undersized four part of last year, but
should be able to move over to the three this year, barring any
unexpected injuries to the frontcourt.
Final
Projection:
The new star in
the paint is the quiet and steady Sean Mallon. Always
overshadowed by his former mustached teammate, Mallon averaged
6.8 points and 4.5 rebounds a season ago and the 6-9 senior’s
numbers should go up in both of those categories. Josh Heytvelt
battled injuries last season and saw limited minutes because of
it. The potential is huge for the 6-11 forward to be a major
contributor for the Bulldogs. The starting job will be tough to
come by with Burgess, Kuso and Davis heading to Spokane, but
we’ll give it to him until the new the guys gain a little more
experience in Coach Mark Few’s system. Replacing the scoring of
Morrison and Batista is the main concern. Yet, there are plenty
of choices. Coach Few will have a tough job dividing the
minutes and hoping all the players can accept their role on the
team. If that happens, the Sweet Sixteen might not be too far
off.
Projected
Post-season Tournament:
NCAA
Projected
Starting Five:
Derek Raivio,
Senior, Guard, 11.1 points per game
Pierre Marie
Altidor-Cespedes, Junior, Guard, 4.2 points per game
David
Pendergraft, Junior, Guard, 3.3 points per game
Sean Mallon,
Senior, Forward, 6.8 points per game
Josh Heytvelt,
Sophomore, Forward, 3.4 points per game
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