2018-19 #WCChoops Schedule | Crumpacker 2018-19 Archives | Profiling the 90-Percenters
By John Crumpacker
#WCChoops Columnist
As the West Coast Conference enters Week 4 of its 16-game schedule, it seems possible that the conference’s Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year might be one and the same.
That can’t be … can it?
When that player is Gonzaga’s
Brandon Clarke, why not?
Clarke, already being called the most important transfer in the country after sitting out a redshirt year in moving from San Jose State to Gonzaga, is a primary reason coach
Mark Few’s team is ranked No. 4 nationally and is 18-2 overall and 5-0 in conference.
Clarke is second on his team in scoring at 16.5, first in rebounding at 7.8, first in the WCC in field goal percentage at .698, first in blocks per game (3.1) and total blocks (61) and, oh, by the way, contributes 1.4 steals per game. In Gonzaga’s November victory over then-No. 1 Duke, he recorded six blocks against a team loaded with 5-star recruits.
Those credentials alone should make Clarke the WCC’s Newcomer of the Year as well as Defensive Player of the Year. As for overall Player of the Year, that’s yet to be determined as BYU’s
Yoeli Childs and Gonzaga’s
Rui Hachimura demonstrate NBA-level potential on a regular basis while Saint Mary’s
Jordan Ford is tied with Childs for the scoring lead (22.3) in the conference. Also in the discussion are San Diego’s
Isaiah Pineiro, averaging 19.7 points and 8.8 rebounds and San Francisco’s
Frankie Ferrari, adding 15.2 points and 4.8 assists.
However, Clarke’s defensive prowess give him an edge over Childs and his teammate Hachimura. Opponents enter the post area at their peril when Clarke is in the game. Though he was a late bloomer coming out of high school, he’s always had an ability to reject shots, whether he was 6-foot-2 or his current 6-8.
Taking in the Gonzaga-Portland game, former Zag
Zach Collins, now with the NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers, said, “He’s a rim protector (but) he’s more than that. He’s so fun to watch.’’
On the defensive end, Clarke is one of those pogo-stick players who can seemingly pop up while standing in place instead of taking a few steps to gather themselves before rising to try to block a shot. In that respect, he’s a Whack-a-Mole in reverse, popping up to reject the mallet before showing up somewhere else.
Of course, it’s early in the conference season and team and individual fortunes can ebb and flow with each game. From this vantage point, however, Clarke should at least be in the discussion for a WCC hat trick. There’s no player in the conference with his specific skill set.
What We Learned
- It must be discouraging for the nine other teams in the WCC to realize that Gonzaga can play at something less than its best, even well below its best, and still win easily. That was the case last week when the Zags ho-hummed their way through wins over Loyola Marymount (73-55) and Portland (89-66) to remain undefeated in the conference standings at 5-0. “We get every team’s best,’’ Gonzaga’s Josh Perkins said.
- With Gonzaga and coach Mark Few in a galaxy far, far away, it’s about time to consider San Francisco’s Kyle Smith as WCC Coach of the Year. Now in his third year on the Hilltop, Smith has the Dons at 16-3 overall and 4-1 in conference, a game behind You Know Who. USF is a team greater than the sum of its parts, and that’s a credit to Smith’s coaching style.
- In addition to lofty Gonzaga, ranked No. 4 nationally and carrying a NET ranking of 3, two other WCC schools are being held in high regard by the people (?), computers (?), sorcery (?) behind the NCAA Evaluation Tool. San Francisco is at 38 and Saint Mary’s at 49, meaning right now, they would be under serious consideration for NCAA Tournament bids. The challenge for the Dons and Gaels is to maintain the kind of play that brought them to this point.
Stat Line of the Week
In an 87-76 victory over Pepperdine, BYU’s
TJ Haws scored a career-high 34 points, converting 18 of 22 chances from the free throw line, to go with 7 rebounds, 8 assists and 2 steals. That’s a line to be proud of.
Tweet of the Week
That’s Pacific coach
Damon Stoudamire, stumping for a very worthy cause. BYU head coach
Dave Rose won the
2018 Infiniti Coaches Challenge.
Quote of the Week
“I saw that in workouts and practice. The guy plays the right way. That’s high praise, though. I like that comparison.’’
That’s one-time Gonzaga standout Collins, responding to comparisons of current Zag star Hachimura to the Toronto Raptors’ Kawhi Leonard.
Player of the Week
Despite dealing with a case of strep throat, USF’s Frankie Ferrari led the Dons to a pair of wins over Pacific and BYU, averaging 14.0 points and 4.5 assists while shooting 45.5 percent from 3-point range. Ferrari shot 8-for-11 for 21 points as the Dons defeated the Cougars 82-63.
The week ahead
The WCC’s new 16-game conference schedule plays out with four games on Thursday and four on Saturday. Thursday’s highlight is Saint Mary’s at BYU in an 9 p.m. (MT) game carried nationally on ESPN2. The Gaels (4-1) will try to maintain a one-game edge on the Cougars (4-2) in this important encounter. Saturday’s best has San Francisco (4-1) playing at San Diego (2-3) at 7 p.m. in a game the Toreros are keen to win to avoid falling farther behind in the conference standings.
Follow the three dots…
Gonzaga’s Hachimura and Portland’s
Tahirou Diabate, who both spent their formative years in Japan, exchanged greetings prior to Saturday night’s game at the Chiles Center. Wonder if they trash-talked in Japanese during the game? … Former Zag Collins attended the Gonzaga-Portland game and when asked what he missed most about his one-year college experience, said, “You miss seeing all your friends and being in that social realm. Playing in the Kennel, that’s something I miss a lot.’’ … It was also nice to see Gonzaga’s starters cheering when a deep reserve named
Matthew Lang scored on a put-back late in the Portland game; he’s a Portland native. … Here at WCC Sports, we’re all about fashion (not). Still, it’s nice to see LMU coach
Mike Dunlap and his staff wearing polo shirts during games (it’s not the senior prom, after all), USF’s Ferrari racing about in neon lime green sneakers and players around the conference wearing shorts that actually come to a stop above the knees, unlike those ridiculous Scottish kilts from the 1990’s and early 2000’s. … For those keeping score at home, Portland’s
Josh McSwiggan has edged ahead of Pacific’s
Lafayette Dorsey in their free throw duel, .909 to .904. The caveat is that Dorsey has attempted 29 more free throws than McSwiggan and made 26 more. For more on McSwiggan vs. Dorsey, click
HERE.