#10/10 Gonzaga (25-5, 14-2 WCC) vs. Chicago State (11-18)
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 1 | 6 P.M. | McCARTHEY ATHLETIC CENTER | SPOKANE
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THE TIP OFF
- Gonzaga and Chicago State meet for the third time Wednesday in the McCarthey Athletic Center at 6 p.m.
- It's the Bulldogs' first non-conference regular season finale since defeating Longwood, 92-60 in 2012 at GU.
- Gonzaga is coming off a 77-69 victory over No. 15 Saint Mary's Saturday. Drew Timme scored 19 points, while Anton Watson had 17 points and Malachi Smith added 13 off the bench for the Bulldogs.
- The Bulldogs have clinched their 16th consecutive 25-win season. Gonzaga is the only program to have reached 25 wins in each of the last 16 seasons in NCAA Div. 1 history.
- The Zags clinched a share of the 2022-23 West Coast Conference regular season title with Saint Mary's. GU has either shared or owned the WCC regular season title outright in each of the last 11 seasons. It's the 26th WCC regular season title in program history, with 22 coming under Head Coach Mark Few. GU currently owns the nation's longest active streak of regular season conference titles at 11.
- Gonzaga leads the country averaging 87.4 points per game and shooting 52.6 percent from the field. The Zags are also first in effective field goal percentage (.586). Timme is third in the nation with 252 made field goals and is sixth with 637 points. His 21.2 points per game rank 14th in the nation. Anton Watson and Timme are first and second in the WCC in field goal percentage at 61.8 and 61.6 percent. Watson is second in two-point field goal percentage at 67.4 percent. Timme is fifth averaging 7.5 rebounds. Strawther's 6.3 rebounds per game are 10th. Nolan Hickman is second with a 2.25 assist-to-turnover ratio. Anton Watson is second averaging 1.87 steals.
- Watson is three steals from moving to ninth on Gonzaga's career steals list. He is currently 10th at 152 steals.
 
SCOUTING THE COUGARS
- Chicago State is one of the two independent programs in NCAA Div. 1 men's basketball.
- The Cougars have won six of their last seven and ride a three-game win streak into Spokane. In its last game, Chicago State beat Hartford, the other NCAA Div. 1 independent team, 75-53, at home on Feb. 19.Jahsean Corbett scored 23 points with seven rebounds. Four other Cougars scored in double-digits with Teshaundre Cole coming off the bench to record 14 points and six boards. Wesley Cardet Jr. had 11 points and five assists. CSU outrebounded Hartford 39-23 and forced 17 turnovers.
- Cardet Jr. averages a team-high 16.8 points, while Corbett adds 13.8 points and a team-best six boards. Elijah Weaver, who transferred from USC and Dayton, chips in 12.2 points and 3.4 assists.
 
SERIES NOTES
- This is the third meeting between the programs.
- The Bulldogs won at Chicago State in 1997, 97-51, and in Spokane over the Cougars in 1998, 84-38.
 
UP NEXT
- Gonzaga plays in the 2023 University Credit Union West Coast Conference Tournament semifinals Monday, March 6.
- The Zags will be the two-seed in the tournament and will play in the second semifinal at 8:30 p.m.
- GU's opponent will be the winner of third-seeded Santa Clara or a winner from Pacific/Pepperdine/San Francisco.
 
MILESTONE WATCH
- Drew Timme ranks second in program history with 2,158 points and eighth with 841 rebounds. He is 39 points from first. Timme needs to average 13 points during the next three games to surpass Frank Burgess for the top spot. Timme is 19 rebounds from fifth in GU history. Timme is at 401 assists in his career.
- Malachi Smith is one made free-throws from 300 in his career.
- Anton Watson is tied for 10th all-time in GU history with 152 steals in his career. He needs three more for ninth, six for eighth and seven for seventh.
- Rasir Bolton is one rebound from 400 in his career.
 
MAKE THAT ELEVEN STRAIGHT
- Gonzaga clinched a share of the 2022-23 West Coast Conference regular season title.
- The Zags have either shared or owned the WCC regular season title outright in each of the last 11 seasons.
- Gonzaga has 26 WCC regular season titles, Coach Few has led GU to 22 of them.
- Gonzaga currently owns the nationally-best active streak of regular season titles, owned or shared at 11.
- Since 1997-98, the Bulldogs have either won or shared 24 of the 26 regular season titles, sharing only four (this season with Saint Mary's, 2015-16 with Saint Mary's, 2010-11 with Saint Mary's, 2001-02 with Pepperdine). SMC won the 2011-12 title and Pepperdine took the 1999-2000 title, both by one game over Gonzaga.
- The Zags shared the title with Santa Clara in 1995-96, and won it outright in 1993-94.
- The Zags matched their program record of 11 straight regular season conference titles from 2001 to 2011.
- Kansas owns the NCAA Div. 1 record with 16 regular season conference titles from 2005 to 2020. UCLA won 13 consecutive league titles from 1967 to 1979. UCONN (1951-60) and UNLV (1983-92) with 10 straight titles are tied for fifth behind Gonzaga's two 11-season runs.
 
TRIPLE BYE IN VEGAS
- Gonzaga has clinched one of the top two seeds in the 2023 University Credit Union West Coast Conference Tournament in Las Vegas.
- The top two seeds earn triple byes in the event to the semifinals on March 6.
- GU has been the top seed in the WCC Tournament in 11 of the 15 years that the event has been in Las Vegas since 2009. Counting this season, the other four years, GU has been the two-seed.
 
ZAGS HIT 25 WINS ... AGAIN
- Gonzaga has now won at least 25 games in each of the last 16 consecutive seasons.
- The Zags have reached the 25-win plateau in 19 of the last 20 seasons, and 21 of the last 25.
- Gonzaga now owns the NCAA Div. 1 record with 16 straight 25-win seasons. Kansas had 15 straight 25-win seasons from 2005 to 2020.
 
TIMME NAMED NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE WEEK
- Drew Timme was named the Naismith Trophy National Player of the Week Monday.
- Timme totaled 41 points in a pair of wins over San Diego and Saint Mary's.
- He was 16-of-25 (64 percent) from the field in the victories, along with 9-of-10 from the free-throw line.
- The senior grabbed 22 rebounds, recording a double-double versus San Diego with 22 points and 13 boards. He pulled down a career-high eight offensive rebounds against the Toreros.
 
ELEMENTARY MY DEAR WATSON
- Anton Watson went on a tear during West Coast Conference play this season.
- He averaged 12.9 points during league play, which ranks third on the team.
- The Spokane native led the WCC shooting 64.8 percent (83-128) from the field in conference action.
- He was 10th in the WCC grabbing 6.2 rebounds per league game. His 2.5 offensive boards per WCC game ranked second.
- The senior was fourth with 1.9 steals and 14th dishing out 2.4 assists per conference contest.