Gonzaga 59, San Diego 56

[January 24, 2014]  SPOKANE, Wash. — No. 21 Gonzaga 59, San Diego 56: Sam Dower Jr. had 18 points and 10 rebounds as the West Coast Conference-leading Bulldogs survived a late push from the visiting Toreros.Przemek Karnowski added 12 points and six rebounds for Gonzaga (17-3, 7-1 WCC), which improved to 11-0 at home. Kevin Pangos had 11 points and Kyle Dranginis added 10 points and seven boards.

Johnny Dee led San Diego (11-10, 2-6) with 26 points on 8-of-10 shooting and was perfect from the 3-point line (3-of-3) and foul line (7-of-7). Dennis Kramer added 10 points and seven rebounds.

Dower hit two early 3-pointers and had 10 of the Bulldogs' first 12 points, but Dee and Duda Sanadze hit 3-pointers during an 8-0 run for a brief 22-17 San Diego lead midway through the first half. Dranginis and David Stockton knocked down back-to-back 3s during a 14-0 run as Gonzaga built a nine-point lead before Dee closed the half with a jumper and a last-second steal and layup to cut the Bulldogs' lead to 33-29 at halftime.

Gonzaga scored the first five points of the second half but could never shake the Toreros, who rallied on Dee's two 3-pointers and three free throws late in the half. Kramer tied the game at 55 with six minutes left but Gonzaga got baskets from Karnowski and Pangos during a 4-1 game-ending run and San Diego's Christopher Anderson missed a tying 3-point attempt prior to the buzzer.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Gonzaga G Gary Bell Jr. had five points, an assist and a steal off the bench after missing the past six games with a broken hand. ... San Diego's last four games have been decided by four or fewer points with the Toreros going 1-3 in that stretch. ... Dee missed his first field-goal attempt before hitting eight straight shots on his way to his sixth 20-point game.

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