Gonzaga-BYU takeaways: Zags' Anton Watson provides early spark, Julian Strawther seals the win
Julian Strawther nailed a go-ahead 3-pointer with nine seconds remaining to lift No. 8 Gonzaga to a 75-74 comeback win over BYU on Thursday.
Here are three takeaways from Gonzaga’s performance:
FRONTCOURT PROVIDES EARLY SPARK
Photo by Rob Gray, USA TODAY Sports
Gonzaga’s previous two victories may have been headlined by its guard play, but it was the big men who took charge early on against BYU.
Forwards Anton Watson, Drew Timme and Ben Gregg scored the team’s first 19 points, single-handedly keeping the Zags competitive as their backcourt struggled to get going offensively.
Watson led the Zags with 14 first-half points on six-of-six shooting from the field, which included a 3-pointer he made to put Gonzaga up 27-22 with 10 minutes remaining until halftime.
Timme registered 10 points before the intermission, while Gregg added six.
Their efforts were barely enough to keep the Zags ahead, as the Cougars also had a few of their players step up in the opening period.
BYU sophomore forward Spencer Johnson put up 10 first-half points on 4-of-5 shooting, which helped to keep his team within striking distance of the Zags.
Gonzaga led 44-39 at halftime.
BYU OUTSHOOTS GONZAGA FROM 3-POINT RANGE
With the lowest 3-point percentage in the WCC, the Cougars aren’t known for their marksmanship from beyond the arc.
However, not much about Thursday’s game went according to plan and BYU’s outside shooting was no exception. The Cougars went 13-for-25 from 3-point range, marking their highest total of triples in a conference game this season.
BYU’s most prolific shooter was Jaxson Robinson, who went 5-for-8 on 3-point attempts and finished with 17 points. Forward Gideon George made four 3-pointers and had 17 points, while Johnson connected on three 3-pointers and scored team-high 18 points.
This was a stark contrast to Gonzaga’s 6-for-18 mark from 3-point range, as the team’s offense appeared to stall numerous times against a top-25 defense according to KenPom.
GONZAGA SURVIVES AGAIN
It was 74-72 with 15 seconds remaining.
Gonzaga appeared destined for an upset loss on the road, but that all changed when Strawther sunk a 3-pointer from the top of the key to give the Zags their first lead in over 11 minutes.
After calling a timeout, BYU’s hopes of winning ended with a heavily-contested missed jumper from Johnson as the buzzer sounded.
Strawther’s go-ahead bucket was more than enough to make up for a lackluster shooting night in which he went 2-for-7 from 3-point range. Gonzaga’s other two starting guards, Nolan Hickman and Rasir Bolton, shot 1-for-5 from beyond the arc.
The victory is the 10th in a row for the Zags, who were coming off a pair of wins that were also decided late in the second half.
Thursday's contest also marks Gonzaga's final WCC trip to Provo, UT, with BYU set to leave for the Big 12 after this year.
The Zags return home to play Portland on Saturday.
