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Gonzaga set to take on FSU in Sweet 16

Thursday is game day for the Gonzaga Bulldogs!

Tip off for the school’s fourth straight Sweet 16 appearance is at 6:59 p.m. on TBS. The No. 4 Zags will take on No. 9 Florida State University in Los Angeles.

Gonzaga taking on the Seminoles will be different from any other team they faced this season.

Leonard Hamilton’s team has a ton of size; they are a big and physical team. Hamilton has two 7’ tall players, reminiscent of the Zags last year.

The FSU roster is deep, typically playing 10 guys for at least 10 minutes per game and normally nine guys score between 6 and 12 points.

“I don’t think we’ve played, I can’t remember, other than Calipari’s unbelievable Memphis team with Derrick Rose and all those guys, a physically imposing team as this,” Mark Few said, the GU head coach. “This is a group of athletes with size and athleticism across the board.”

“They got wings that can really jump and spread the floors as well and also bigs, that front line is huge so we just need to find ways to play around that and, you know, get a win,” said Zach Norvell Jr., a freshman guard.

One of the places where FSU physicality tends to show itself is on defense, which means Josh Perkins will be key just like last weekend.

Seminoles hope pressure Gonzaga full court and turn GU over. As the team’s only point guard, he knows his role will be crucial.

“I gotta do my job and take care of the ball and not have a lot of turnovers,” Perkins said. “That’s going to be a huge thing for us.”

Gonzaga Bulldogs

3 THINGS TO WATCH

1) Turnovers: Gonzaga has struggled with taking care of the ball at points throughout the season, but Thursday’s game will rely on the steady hands of Josh Perkins.

The Seminoles beat Missouri and Xavier last week to start the tournament and in both games, the team logged at least 16 turnovers.

2) Shutting down FSU offense: The next key thing the Zags will need to do is to shut down the Florida State offense. Silas Melson will be a big catalyst for that. Back in Boise, we predicted Melson would have a big game in the second weekend of the tournament and this could be it. We’re also interested in how he does on the defensive side of the ball as two of their top three scorers are guards.

3) Free throws: The Zags have to make their free throws in Thursday’s game or they will be out of luck. The Bulldogs have missed 12 free throws in back to back games and when we looked back at the trip to the Taco Bell Arena, both games did not have to be that close if the Zags had made their freebies. If Gonzaga can limit their misses to five or six, they will be in better shape to win this game.

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