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There is no ‘I’ in Blake Stepp. There is only ‘TAKE’; take what is given. Stepp took what was given and made the most of it Friday night in a 90-55 route of Long Beach State. The 49’ers realized what a weapon Stepp’s jumper can be and decided not to give him any room to breathe, but there was enough room to pass, and pass he did. Sixteen assists later and a single-game assist record broken, Gonzaga got their most decisive victory of the year.
Lacking the usual voice-power of the Kennel Club due to the beginning of GU’s holiday break, anything was possible. Long Beach State kept things close, too close, for the beginning of the half. Richard Fox and Josh Reisman got the sell-out crowd shouting with a Reisman behind-the-back pass to Richard for the lay-in. Reisman had the best night of his young career, scoring a career-high 12 points and forcing several L.B.S. turnovers.
Fox tipped in numerous baskets, going 7 for 7 for the night. Gonzaga held the lead at intermission, 43-32. Tony Skinner would be the reason for the Bulldogs’ lead, recording ten points in the final minutes of the half, including a break-away slam at the buzzer that would ignite Gonzaga’s crowd and gave a glimpse of what was in store for Beach after intermission.
The second half would have nothing but sweet memories for Gonzaga fans. Ronny and Cory would lead the Zags’ stampede, scoring multiple baskets with fouls attached for three-point plays.
Ronny, especially, allowed the Zags to pull away, swatting two shots and capitalizing on several fast breaks with dunks. The entire night was filled with hustle plays, but the night’s best ended with perhaps the funniest finish. Stepp, who throughout the game was feeding GU’s big men, knocked the ball away from a 49’er, Bankhead dove on the floor to poke it to Ronny, who took it down court with Tony Skinner by his side. Perhaps too many options for an ESPN high-light reel was too much to handle for Ronny, because he attempted something spectacular that just didn’t go quite as planned. Apparently losing control on his way to a tomahawk jam, Ronny demonstrated his athleticism by recovering in mid-air for an awkward finger-tip-scoop shot. Everyone, even Ronny, went wild.
Consecutive threes by Stepp, Bankhead, and Skinner put the Zags up by 26, 70-44, and sealed Long Beach’s fate. The night was capped off by a number of jaw-dropping lay-ups by Reisman and Brian Michaelson.
The entire game was encouraging. The Zags played hard-nosed basketball throughout the night, not allowing their opponents’ woeful record to stop them from giving 100%. Every Zag played and featured a balanced night of scoring. Ronny and Cory led the way with 17, Fox and Skinner (who also collected a team-high 8 boards) each recorded 14 points. Stepp tallied five points, but set the school record single-game assists with 16, one more than the entire Long Beach State team handed out! Long Beach State played right with Gonzaga for a good part of the contest, but Gonzaga’s experience, intensity, and talent was too much for the 49’ers to handle. Gonzaga will challenge the strong Eastern Washington University Eagles in the President’s Cup at the sold-out Spokane Arena this Sunday.