Thursday, February 06, 2014
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Gonzaga 71, Portland 66

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[February 06, 2014]  SPOKANE, Wash. — No. 20 Gonzaga 71, Portland 66: David Stockton and Kevin Pangos both scored 13 points and hit crucial 3-pointers in the game's final minutes and the host Bulldogs rallied after blowing a 22-point lead to avenge their lone West Coast Conference loss of the season.

Angel Nunez also scored 13 points and Sam Dower added 10 for Gonzaga (21-3, 11-1 WCC) which won its seventh straight game. Stockton scored five straight points on a pair of free throws and a 3-pointer with 2:17 to go to give the Bulldogs the lead for good.

Playing in his hometown, Ryan Nicholas led all scorers with 15 points and grabbed a game-high 15 rebounds for Portland (13-11, 5-7), which ended Gonzaga's 22-game conference winning streak earlier in the season. Kevin Bailey added 13 points and Bryce Pressley recorded 11 points and six rebounds for the Pilots, who haven't won in Spokane, Wash., since the 2002-03 season.

The Bulldogs, who never led in the first meeting of the season, used a 20-1 run early in the game and eventually built a 22-point first-half lead. Drew Barham knocked down all three of his 3-point attempts before the break and Gonzaga, which had struggled from long range recently, was 7-for-11 from behind the arc in the first half and took a 40-23 lead into intermission.

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The Pilots, however, opened the second half on an 20-5 run to cut the deficit to 45-43 with 10:51 to play and eventually took the lead at 54-51 by hitting three straight 3-pointers, the last by Pressley with 6:41 to play. Trailing 56-52, Gonzaga's Dower scored six straight points and the Bulldogs later got a 3-pointer by Pangos with 1:41 to play to make it 66-60.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Gonzaga has won 23 straight at home. ...Bailey sat for 10 minutes in the second half after picking up his fourth foul but Portland outscored Gonzaga by nine in his absence. ... Stockton entered the game with just eight 3-pointers made on the season but was 3-for-4 from behind the arc in the game.

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