Michael Ajayi takes move to Gonzaga’s bench in stride

SPOKANE — Michael Ajayi believes his offensive production will come. Until then, the senior wing is focused on doing all the little things in a big way for the 19th-ranked Gonzaga basketball team.

Take Thursday’s game against Portland at the Arena.

Ajayi, told days earlier during a team shootaround he’d be replaced by Ben Gregg in Gonzaga’s starting lineup, struggled to rediscover his shooting rhythm in an 81-50 blowout of the Pilots, making 1 of 7 shots from the field to score just five points in 19 minutes.

But move over a few columns in the box score and you’ll notice Ajayi’s 15 rebounds, which represented a season-high — and two shy of a career-high — for the Pepperdine transfer, who averaged 9.9 during a breakout 2023-24 season with the Waves.

“Shots are not going to fall every time you shoot it, so you’ve got to find some way to impact the game,” Ajayi said on Thursday. “My way is to rebound, try to grab every rebound like it’s my last. That’s my mindset.”

Ajayi is focused on being more aggressive on the offensive end and saw some rewards late in Thursday’s win, scoring four of his five points in a 16-second stretch toward the end of the second half.

The player’s father, Ayo, was in attendance on Thursday and reminded his son to maintain an aggressive approach during a brief postgame chat.

“He’s my biggest coach, my biggest advocate, I love him,” Ajayi said before providing an anecdote from their postgame conversation. “‘Even though you’re 1 for 7, you’re aggressive. That’s what I like.’”

Gonzaga coach Mark Few reassured Ajayi he was still a central part of the team’s plans after making a lineup change shortly after the player scored two points and committed four turnovers during a return to Pepperdine on Monday.

“Coach pulled me aside and was like, ‘We need you, we love you and we need you to slow down,’” Ajayi said. “Not starting is not that big of a deal. My goal is to impact winning, so if that’s the case, coach Few did a good job reminding me of who I am and starting for now I’m going to be more aggressive on the court and grab more rebounds.”

For much of Thursday’s game, Ajayi was on rebound-per-minute pace, using his size and strength to box out Portland players for a handful of his 15 boards while jumping, sprinting or sprawling for the rebounds that were out of his area.

“Mike is a good dude, all around,” senior guard Nolan Hickman said. “His energy that he brings every day, his work ethic. Everything about Mike, he does his thing. All kudos to him, props to him. He gives us what’s needed on the offensive end, especially with rebounding and everything, but he’ll get going offensively for sure. He’ll get going offensively down the stretch of the season.”

Ajayi and Gregg were instrumental in limiting Portland’s leading scorer, Austin Rapp, who entered the game averaging 14.4 points and 6.3 rebounds, to just 14 points on 2 of 8 shooting and four rebounds on Thursday.

“He’s a great shooter, loves to shoot in transition, so we’re just spotting him in transition, not trying to let him get a 3 up and be more aggressive on him on the catches and not let him drive,” Ajayi said. “Me and Benny did a great job of containing him.”

Since scoring 14 points on perfect shooting (6 of 6) on Dec. 14 against Connecticut, Ajayi’s managed just 11 points in Gonzaga’s last five games, shooting 3 of 21 from the field and 0 of 8 from the 3-point line during that stretch while committing eight turnovers. Ajayi’s missed 12 consecutive 3-point attempts since his last make on Nov. 27 against West Virginia.

The WCC’s leading scorer at 17.2 points per game last season, Ajayi isn’t the top offensive option for Gonzaga most nights, said it’s taken time to adjust to the Bulldogs’ offensive system, which relies heavily on ball screens, cutting and off-ball movement.

“So many little things you have to do and know and remember,” Ajayi said. “But it’s only my second year playing Division I, so I’m going to catch on and be confident and do my best for the team.”