|
 The Bulldogs missed 13 of their first 17 shots, then sank 20 of
30 the rest of the way in a 59-39 triumph over San Diego. Center
Przemek Karnowski led four Bulldogs in double figures with a
game-high 14 points, and he added a game-high eight rebounds.
Gonzaga trailed most of the first half and looked bad doing it, but
the veteran squad never appeared to be rattled.
"I wouldn't say we got worried," senior guard Gary Bell Jr. said
casually. "We've just got to play Gonzaga basketball.
"In the first half, we were kind of lackadaisical. I think we get
bored sometimes. We're playing the same teams over and over."
Fortunately for the Bulldogs, they are still winning over and over.
Gonzaga earned its 22nd consecutive victory overall, its 41st
straight at home and its 22nd in a row against West Coast Conference
rivals. The Bulldogs, 29-1 overall, can complete an 18-0 league
season with a home win over BYU on Saturday.
 San Diego coach Bill Grier, a former Gonzaga assistant, marveled at
the offensive and defensive skill as well as the depth of the
Bulldogs.
"The talent discrepancy between our two programs -- they're just so
talented," Grier said.
The Toreros (14-15, 7-10) slowed the game down and led most of the
first half, but they could not overcome 29.6 percent shooting for
the game. Gonzaga relentlessly pounded the ball inside against the
smaller Toreros to build a 38-14 advantage in points in the paint.
The Bulldogs managed just one field goal and two free throws over a
stretch of nearly 11 minutes in the first half before reserve
forward Domantas Sabonis scored on three of Gonzaga's four shots in
the final 2:09 before the break. Backup point guard Eric McClellan
fed forward Kyle Wiltjer and Sabonis with slick feeds for the last
two baskets of the half.
"Eric McClellan really changed the game," Gonzaga coach Mark Few
said. "He got in there and kind of slapped our faces, woke us up."
Bell agreed: "Eric came in and gave us a big spark. He got us
rolling."
The 39 points were a season low for San Diego. Forward Brandon Perry
led the Toreros with nine points. Bell, a suffocating defender,
helped limit all-time San Diego scoring leader Johnny Dee to six
points on 2-for-10 shooting.
"G.B. did an amazing job of guarding Johnny Dee," McClellan said.
[to top of second column] |
Dee, a senior guard who is the active NCAA Division I career leader
with 332 3-pointers, shot 0-for-3 from beyond the arc. Bell had to
fight through plenty of screens to stay with Dee.
"It wasn't all me," Bell said. "It was guys helping me out."
Bell scored 10 of his 13 points in the second half, and guard Byron
Wesley scored 10 of his 12 points after intermission. Sabonis, a
freshman who is drawing plenty of attention from NBA scouts, went
5-for-5 off the bench and finished with 11 points and seven
rebounds.
"Incredible depth," Grier said.
Gonzaga shot 51.1 percent for the game and 61.5 percent in the
second half. That helped Gonzaga overcome poor offensive
performances by the team's top two scorers, Wiltjer (five points)
and point guard Kevin Pangos (three). The duo combined to shoot
3-for-12 from the floor.
NOTES: Gonzaga senior PG Kevin Pangos and redshirt junior F Kyle
Wiltjer were among 14 finalists named Thursday for the Oscar
Robertson Trophy. The annual award for college basketball's player
of the year is selected by the United States Basketball Writers
Association. Gonzaga is the only school with two finalists. ...
Jerry Krause, who is retiring after 14 years as director of
basketball operations at Gonzaga, was honored prior to the game.
According to Gonzaga's website, Krause is the most published
basketball author with more than 30 books. A former part-time
assistant coach at Gonzaga, Krause ushered Eastern Washington from
NAIA to NCAA Division I during a 17-year stint as the Eagles' head
coach. ... The Toreros play at Portland on Saturday.
[© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
