Former Pilot Nigel Williams-Goss fuels Gonzaga’s success

With the confetti still fresh on the floor from Gonzaga’s West Coast Conference tournament championship last year, coach Mark Few asked Nigel Williams-Goss to help cut down the net.

The former Findlay Prep standout, redshirting after transferring from Washington, refused.

“I was like no, you guys earned this, this is your thing,” Williams-Goss said. “So this year I’m hoping to experience that same thing and get my first conference championship.”

Eligible to play this season, the junior point guard has done everything in his power to make those championship dreams come true. Behind Williams-Goss, No. 4 Gonzaga is 30-1 and just two wins away from capturing the WCC tournament crown for the fifth straight year.

The top-seeded Bulldogs play No. 4 Santa Clara in the semifinals at 6 p.m. Monday in Orleans Arena.

“It’s kind of been a surreal feeling all year, just being in positions that I was watching on the sideline last year,” Williams-Goss said. “Last year I was there supporting the guys, watching the confetti fall on them and watching them cut the nets.”

Williams-Goss left Washington after two seasons without a conference tournament victory, but earned his first one easily on Saturday as Gonzaga routed Pacific 82-50. The point guard impressed offensively in the win, hitting 7-of-11 shots for 20 points and dishing out four assists.

The outing was nothing new for Williams-Goss, who leads the nation’s No. 11 scoring offense with 16.4 points per game in his first year playing with the Bulldogs. But despite his impressive charge after a year off, both Williams-Goss and Few said they weren’t shocked by his performance this season.

“I didn’t surprise myself at all,” Williams-Goss said. “What I wanted to do was work hard my redshirt year so I could come out and be ready to perform at a high level.”

His preparation resulted in him taking home two conference awards, WCC Player and Newcomer of the Year. Williams-Goss is also one of 15 players on the ballot for the John R. Wooden Award, given annually to the nation’s top college basketball player.

“He’s had a heck of a year,” Few said. “He literally never leaves a stone unturned, whether it’s how he takes care of himself, how he mentally prepared or how he physically prepares.”

Few said Williams-Goss is Gonzaga’s most vocal leader, with the point guard taking charge both on and off the court. Freshman Zach Collins said Williams-Goss is the one who will get on teammates if a practice starts sluggish or lazy, while also organizing group activites to help the team bond.

“He gets us going,” Collins said. “He’s meant everything as far as chemistry and getting better on the court and obviously leading us to a lot of big time victories.”

Two more big wins in the WCC semifinals and championship game and Williams-Goss would finally get to take his turn cuttting down the net after winning a title. And even though he’s originally from Happy Valley, Oregon, getting to do so in Las Vegas would likely be a sweet feeling for the former Pilot.

“I was super excited to come back here, play in front of a lot of family and friends,” Williams-Goss said. “It feels like coming home.”

Contact reporter Ben Gotz at bgotz@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BenSGotz on Twitter.