Nigel Williams-Goss makes an emphatic statement, as does Gonzaga
GLENDALE, Ariz. — Back in February, in a dark, mostly empty locker room at Loyola Marymount University, a reporter asked Nigel Williams-Goss about the state of Gonzaga’s program.
The 'Zags had just put a 90-60 hurting on the Lions to improve to 26-0 and were ranked No. 1 in the country. And yet it seemed as though the Bulldogs still had their doubters. Sure, their record was sparkling. But would beating up on overmatched opponents all winter in the WCC, winning games by 20, 30, 40 points, hurt Gonzaga and make them complacent as the Bulldogs neared the NCAA tournament?
The junior guard took a deep breath.
“It’s easy to stay grounded when you feel like you have the whole country doubting you,” Williams-Goss told FOX Sports at the time. “We feel like we’ve got a lot of non-believers out there.”
If there are any doubts left, Gonzaga's 77-73 victory over South Carolina in Saturday’s first national semifinal should squash them. The Bulldogs took control early and built a 14-point lead over the Gamecocks in the second half. And it was thanks in large part to Williams-Goss, who hails from Oregon.
The 22-year-old guard led the way, shooting 9-of-16 from the field for 23 points to go with five rebounds and six assists. He also had a personal 6-0 run to give the 'Zags their largest lead of the game, 65-51, and force South Carolina into a full-court press.
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South Carolina coach Frank Martin admitted that he wished he would have gone to it sooner.
“[Williams-Goss] was in total control of the game in the first 30 minutes,” Martin said. “Total control of the game. I probably should have extended our defense earlier in the game. I was concerned that we wouldn’t have enough juice left in the tank to finish off the game … he’s good. Really good.”
And yet the Gonzaga doubters persist. For years it’s been the small school and conference. Then when they became a national power, it was the lack of success in March.
Now that the Bulldogs have made their first national championship, people have pointed at what appears to be an advantageous path they took to Monday night’s title game, in which Gonzaga beat 11-seed Xavier in the Elite Eight and then seven-seed South Carolina in the Final Four.
“We can't control who we played,” Williams-Goss defended. “Obviously I mean these teams have all beaten really good teams. Look at the teams that Xavier beat from down the line — Arizona, Florida State, Maryland, South Carolina ... beating Baylor, Duke.”
Even Martin had a message for those who still don’t believe in Mark Few’s club.
“It’s not 1997 anymore,” the Gamecocks coach said. “They were Cinderella and all that pretty stuff in ’97. They’ve been in this thing for 20 consecutive years. They’re as high-major as high-major can get."
This latest swipe at his program seemed to be the final straw, and William-Goss wasn't going to take it anymore.
"I think the [lack of] respect thing has to go out the window," William-Goss said. "You have 37 wins in a college season, I mean that's just unbelievable. And to be playing the last game of the season, we have a chance to play for it all. And we're here to win it."
