If the Gonzaga Bulldogs reach the Elite Eight for the third time in four years, they’ll have to go through a familiar foe in Zach Edey and the Purdue Boilermakers, whom they’ve lost to in the last two times that they met.
When these two teams faced off in the Maui Invitational last November, the Gonzaga Bulldogs came away with a 73-63 win, as Zach Edey had 25 points, 14 rebounds, and three blocks. Before that, they lost to Purdue 84-66 in the Phil Knight Legacy tournament, as Edey recorded 23 points, seven rebounds, and three blocks.
And just like most teams here in the NCAA tournament, the Gonzaga Bulldogs have yet to find an answer for the mastodon that is Zach Edey, and they have to do so fast.
In his latest appearance on FS1’s The Herd with Colin Cowherd , Gonzaga Bulldogs head coach Mark Few praised Zach Edey for his development, saying he has never dealt with a player like him before.
“In 25 years I have been a head coach here, I have never dealt with a player, or an entity like him. He is a really, really, really good basketball player,” said Few.
“And he does everything well, I mean he posts the right way, can score. And then at the other end he’s just — we’re a team that likes to shoot and are very effective in the paint, and like to shoot twos — it’s tough to get shots off in the paint,” he added.
How the Gonzaga Bulldogs can beat Zach Edey and the Purdue Boilermakers, according to former All-American
Because Zach Edey has been unstoppable, which is why Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has been effusive in his praise of him, the focus is letting him work to get all the points while shutting down his teammates.
That’s the idea presented by former Gonzaga Bulldogs star Adam Morrison when he was asked how he’ll stop the Purdue Boilermakers during the latest episode of The Perimeter podcast.
“You kind of have to live with what Edey gives you,” said Morrison. “You just hope he doesn’t score 40.”
But it will be much easier said than done for Gonzaga since Zach Edey has been a beast for Purdue in March Madness, averaging 26.5 points, 17.5 rebounds, and 3.0 blocks per game while shooting 67.9 percent from the field across two tournament games.
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