#6/5 Gonzaga (3-1) vs. Portland State (2-2)
THURSDAY, NOV. 24 | 9:30 P.M. | VETERANS MEMORIAL COLISEUM | PORTLAND, OR
TELEVISION: ESPN
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THE TIP OFF
- Gonzaga opens the Phil Knight Legacy tournament against Portland State in the quarterfinals in Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Portland Thursday at 9:30 p.m.
- The Zags have the advantage in the series 19-7, but the Pacific Northwest foes have not met since 2008.
- GU returns to the Rose Quarter where it defeated Georgia State and Memphis in last season's NCAA Tournament first and second rounds. The Bulldogs also placed third in their bracket in the PK80 Invitational in 2017.
- The Bulldogs are in the midst of a stretch of games against potentially six currently ranked teams over a seven-game span; No. 12 Michigan State, won 64-63; at No. 4 Texas, lost 74-93; No. 4 Kentucky, won 88-72; No. 24 Purdue; No. 8 Duke; No. 7 Baylor. Texas, Kentucky, Baylor and Duke are currently first, fourth, seventh and ninth in the KenPom rankings, while the Zags are third.
- Gonzaga is coming off an 88-72 win over then-ranked No. 4 Kentucky. The Bulldogs never trailed in the matchup of Top-5 ranked teams in a sold-out Spokane Arena. Three Zags finished scored 20 or more (Bolton 24, Timme 22, Strawther 20), and Anton Watson had 10 points and 10 rebounds. Strawther also grabbed 14 rebounds.
- The Zags are No. 6 in the Associated Press poll. The Bulldogs' 117 straight AP Poll appearances top the nation. Gonzaga has been in the Top 10 for a national-best 84 straight polls, which ranks as the fourth-longest streak in AP poll history. The 117 consecutive appearances in the Top 25 is 13th all-time in the poll's history.
 
SCOUTING THE VIKINGS
- After a pair of road losses to open the season, Portland State has won back-to-back games entering the Phil Knight Legacy. The Vikings are coming off a 79-66 win at Oregon State Saturday.
- In PSU's first-ever win over Oregon State, Jorell Saterfield led all scorers with 26 points, making four three-pointers. Hunter Woods added three makes behind-the-arc with 19 points. Portland State finished 19-of-21 from the free-throw line.
- Saterfield paces Portland State averaging 17.5 points per game. Woods grabs a team-best 7.5 rebounds per game, while scoring 12.5 points. Cameron Parker averages 14 points and 5.5 assists per outing. Isiah Kirby also chips in 12.5 points.
- The Vikings were picked seventh in the Big Sky Coache's Preseason Poll.
 
SERIES INFO
- This is the 27th all-time meeting between Gonzaga and Portland State. The Northwest foes have not met since the Vikings upset then-ranked No. 7 GU, 77-70, in Spokane on Dec. 23, 2008.
- The Zags own the all-time series, 19-7.
- Gonzaga won the first all-time meeting, 75-63, in Spokane on Dec. 10, 1956.
- This is the fifth time the teams have met when the Bulldogs have been ranked.
- The Zags are 324-220 all-time against current members from the Big Sky Conference, including 43-1 under Mark Few.
 
UP NEXT
- Depending on the outcome of Thursday's game, Gonzaga faces either Purdue or West Virginia.
- A win on Thursday over Portland State advances the Zags to the semifinals Friday at 8:30 p.m.
- A loss to Portland State moves GU to the consolation side of the bracket for a 6 p.m. game Friday.
- The Bulldogs will play in the Moda Center Friday with either outcome Thursday.
 
OTHER POTENTIAL OPPONENTS AT PK LEGACY
- Second game
Purdue - Purdue leads the series, 2-0
West Virginia - Gonzaga leads the series, 5-0
- Third game
Duke - Duke leads the series, 3-1
Oregon State - OSU leads the series, 11-0
Florida - Series tied, 2-2
Xavier - Gonzaga leads the series, 4-1
 
MILESTONE WATCH
- Drew Timme ranks 12th in program history with 1,605 points and 12th with 652 rebounds. He is 16 points from tying Richie Frahm for 11th and 41 points from the Top-10, and 12 rebounds from matching Jim Dixon's 11th-best mark.
- Rasir Bolton is two steals from 100 in his career.
- Rasir Bolton is nine assists from 300 in his career.
 
A ZAG WIN WOULD ...
- Extend the second-longest streak in the AP Poll era for ranked against unranked opponents to 72 games.
- Be the 82nd straight victory over an unranked team, and 14th over an unranked team on a neutral floor.
- Improve Drew Timme's collegiate record to 93-8 in a Gonzaga uniform. (92.1 win percentage)
 
GIVING THANKS FOR THESE EVENTS
- Gonzaga is 42-11 under Mark Few in events during the week of Thanksgiving, and 31-5 in the last eight Thanksgiving week events.
- Under Mark Few, GU has won seven tournaments during the week of Thanksgiving, and played in 11 of the 15 tournament championship games.
- Last season, the Bulldogs won the Empire Classic in Las Vegas, defeating Central Michigan and No. 2 UCLA. Top-ranked Gonzaga then fell to No. 5 Duke, 84-81, in the Continental Tire Challenge the Friday after Thanksgiving in T-Mobile Arena.
 
LAST TIME AT PK80
- At the PK80 Invitational in 2017, Gonzaga placed third following a 76-71 overtime win over Texas. The Zags led by as many as 21 points with 14:08 before the Longhorns stormed back to force overtime. Rui Hachimura led GU with 20 points and nine rebounds.
- In the semifinals, seventh-ranked Florida outlasted No. 17 Gonzaga, 111-105, in double overtime. The game featured 17 lead changes and 11 ties. All five Bulldog starters finished in double-digit scoring led by Johnathan Williams' career-high 39 points on 16-of-22 shooting. He added 12 points. Jalen Hudson led Florida with 35 points, making eight of the Gators' 17 threes.
- The night before in the quarterfinals, Williams scored 21 points, while Josh Perkins had 20, in an 86-59 rout win over Ohio State. GU finished 58.5 percent from the field, including 12-of-25 from three-point range.
 
ROSEY CONNECTIONS
- Gonzaga has a history of players from Portland and its surrounding area.
- Current Zag Ben Gregg grew up just south of Portland and attended Clackamas High School, while Kaden Perry is from Battle Ground, Wash., 26 miles north of the Rose City.
- Former GU standouts Nigel Williams-Goss, Kyle Wiltjer, Mike Hart, Silas Melson and Matt Santangelo are all from the Portland area.
- Richie Frahm (Battle Ground, Wash.), Derek Raivio (Vancouver, Wash.), Dan Dickau (Vancouver, Wash.) and Zach Gourde (Vancouver, Wash.) are from just on the other side of the Washington border.
- Assistant Coach Brian Michaelson starred at Jesuit High School before playing at Gonzaga.
- Head Coach Mark Few is from Creswell, Ore., 120 miles south of Portland.
- Former Zag Zach Collins was drafted by the Portland Trail Blazers in 2017, and Dickau had two stints with the Blazers, before working for them as a player development assistant.
 
DOGS RULE CATS
- No. 2 Gonzaga rolled to an 88-72 victory over No. 4 Kentucky in the Spokane Arena. The Bulldogs never trailed and led by as many as 19 points.
- Rasir Bolton scored 24 points, Drew Timme added 22 and Julian Strawther had 20 points and 14 rebounds.
- The Zag trio became only the second trio with 20 points each in a game against Kentucky under John Calipari since Duke's Zion Williamson, R.J. Barrett, and Cam Reddish accomplished the feat in 2018.
- Anton Watson had 10 points and 10 rebounds for GU.
- With the win, the Bulldogs have now won six of their last seven regular season games versus Top-5 opponents, all since the start of the 2018-19 season.
 
TAKING CARE OF BUSINESS
- Gonzaga has won 71 consecutive games when ranked against unranked opponents, the 2nd-longest such streak in the AP Poll era.
- GU has won 81 straight games over unranked teams.
 
TIMME TIDBITS
- GU is 29-2 when Drew Timme scores 20 or more.
- Timme's record in his apprearances is 93-8 (.920).
- The Zags have been ranked No. 1 in 30 of the 59 AP polls during Timme's career.