What Mark Few Said After Gonzaga’s Historic Rout of Southern Utah
Bulldogs notch a 72-point blowout over the Thunderbirds
Gonzaga had to clear space in its record books after Monday’s dominant showing against Southern Utah.
The Bulldogs (5–0) crushed the Thunderbirds (1–4) in a 122–50 win at the McCarthey Athletic Center, establishing a new program record for the largest victory margin—72 points—against a Division I opponent.
The school’s biggest win overall remains a 78-point victory over NAIA program Eastern Oregon in December 2022. But Monday’s result surpassed a 66-point win over Eastern Oregon in November 2023 and a 61-point win over Denver in 2018, the previous high mark for a Division I matchup (a 101–40 rout of the Pioneers).
Gonzaga also finished just one point short of tying the McCarthey Athletic Center’s single-game scoring record, set during a 123–57 victory over Eastern Oregon in 2023.
Defense fueled the blowout. The Zags forced a season-high 23 turnovers and held their WAC opponent to 18-of-61 shooting (29.5%). Southern Utah went scoreless for the first four minutes and fell behind by as many as 32 points before halftime.
Here’s how Mark Few reflected on the performance:
On what pleased him most
“I thought everyone who got on the floor brought great effort. Each group we put out there handled business defensively. We were sharp with our coverages, active, disruptive, getting deflections, and that helped us get out in transition.”
On Braden Huff’s efficient outing
“This should give him a confidence boost, which is exactly what we need. When he’s himself, he can score on anybody. He had a couple games where he got a little shaken, so it’s great to see him back to feeling good and seeing the rim well.”
On whether the team is where he expected entering the Players Era Festival
“It’s always a work in progress. I told the guys we finally have some time now. These past games came so fast that we were constantly moving to the next opponent or resting. Now we can clean some things up and try to get everyone aligned.”
“With three games in three days, we’ll see every scenario—late-game situations, sideline and baseline out-of-bounds, matchup zones—all without practice time. We need everyone to adjust quickly, understand what we’re doing, and add a few new wrinkles. Some things have worked, some haven’t, and now we can tighten things up.”
On opening the event against Alabama
“They’ve started the season incredibly well. Nate’s teams are always fantastic, and we’ve had some great games with them. But this is going to be a huge test. They looked like a top-five, even top-three team when I watched them.”
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