Gonzaga vs Duke for a trip to the Final 4

I have been walking on clouds all day. That win over UCLA was very, very, tasty. No only that, but it exorcised the 17 point come-from-behind loss to UCLA in the Sweet 16 way back in 2006. 

It also puts the Zags into the Elite 8 for only the second time, with the added bonus and possibility of getting some pay-back for an embarrassing loss to Duke that I have not been able to put behind me, yet.

Yes, on Sunday Gonzaga gets to play Duke for a chance to go to their first Final 4. Additionally, they get an opportunity to avenge that embarrassing beat-down suffered at the hands of Duke on a national stage on December 19th 2009, in Madison Square Garden.

At the time Gonzaga was ranked #15 nationally while Duke checked in at #7. Duke absolutely dominated, while holding Gonzaga to its lowest point total in 25 years, in a 76-41 blowout victory in the Aerospatiale Classic. I have hated Duke ever since.

This time around the Zags are a #2 seed while Duke is a #1 seed. Both have depth, talented bigs, potent offenses, solid defenses, and to be honest, seem pretty evenly matched. Gonzaga is the #1 team in the nation in field goal percentage, while Duke is #4. The Zags have a record of 35-2, winning 28 of their last 29 games, while Duke is 32-4, winning 18 of their last 20. Gonzaga scores 79.1 points per game, while Dukes scores 80.6. Gonzaga has a lot of experience, namely, a talented senior backcourt of Bell and Pangos. Duke is young, having a freshman trio of future NBA’ers in Tyus Jones, Jahlil Okafor, and Justise Winslow.

But something’s gotta give. Perhaps it will come down to whoever can overcome the odd set-up of the venue, which has seemed to bother shooters. NRG Stadium is the home of the Houston Texans. It has been converted so as to resemble a basketball court, but there are no walls behind the baskets. Add in the black drop cloths at both ends and it seems to be screwing up player’s depth perception. 

Kyle Wiltjer doesn't think so saying “"We just missed shots," He added,” You either make them or you don't. We don't really blame it on the arena or anything like that." But, the Zags had their worst shooting night of the season, going a woeful 3-19 from deep (15.8%) and Duke only went 3-13 (23.1%) in their last game. Also, according to Ken Pomeroy, 30 teams playing 30 games at the venue since 2002 have shot just 32 percent from 3-point range. Need more proof? Butler shot 18.8% there in 2011 against Uconn in the title game, so this is not a fluke, It’s hard to shoot there.

Because no-one can shoot there, haha, it most likely will come down to youth vs experience and who has the better bigs. Whoever can control the paint and score inside will determine who advances. I favor Gonzaga’s experience over the more talented albeit youthful Duke players. Also, the Zags are more potent inside with their trio of Karnowski, Wiltjer and Sabonis. If Gonzaga’s bigs can stay out of foul trouble, they will wear down Okafor enough to get the win.

Presently, the Zags are 2.5 point underdogs, but I see an upset in this one. Gonzaga will surprise the Dookies with the 74-69 win and move on to their very first Final 4. The only thing left now is the waiting…and another sleepless night!