Coach Praises Suggs After Heartbreaking Loss

On Saturday night Gonzaga Bulldogs freshman Jalen Suggs lived the dream of every kid who has ever picked up a basketball—banking a buzzer-beating three-pointer from near half-court to give his team a 93-90 overtime win over UCLA that moved his team to the NCAA National Championship.

Suggs, who led his high school team, Minnehaha Academy, to three consecutive 2A state championships, knew his aim was true and already was running off the court to celebrate before the ball dropped through the net.

After Monday’s heartbreaking 86-70 loss to Baylor that ended the dream of a perfect season, an inconsolable Suggs was one of the last Gonzaga players to leave the court.  It is likely the only collegiate loss Suggs will suffer. He is expected to be a top five lottery pick in the NBA draft. Head coach Mark Few said, “I thanked him for just how coachable, and what a great teammate he was, and just what a winner he was.”

Minnehaha is owned by the Northwest Conference of the Evangelical Covenant Church. In addition to leading the team to three basketball titles, Suggs was a two-way football prep star, and guided his team—a co-op of St. Paul, Minnehaha, and Blake—to the 4A state championship in 2018 and as runner-up in 2019. He became the first high school player in Minnesota history to be named the state’s top basketball and football player.