Gonzaga Bulldogs 101, San Diego Toreros 74: Live updates recap, highlights in WCC men's basketball
Gonzaga men's basketball was dominant on both ends of the floor in its 101-74 victory over San Diego on Saturday.
Ben Gregg had a career-night with 22 points, seven rebounds and four steals off the bench for the Bulldogs (11-4, 2-0 WCC). Graham Ike chipped in 19 points and eight rebounds in 21 minutes of action. Ryan Nembhard stuffed the statsheet with 18 points, nine assists, six rebounds and four steals.
Gonzaga shot 56.5% from the field and went 10-for-23 from beyond the arc. Many of the team's baskets came off San Diego's miscues, as the Bulldogs scored 27 points off 19 turnovers. It's the most turnovers they've forced this season.
For the Toreros (10-7, 0-2 WCC), Deuce Turner dropped 24 points after his career-high 34 against Saint Mary's on Thursday. Kevin Patton Jr. added 16 points and five rebounds. The Toreros shot 43.9% from the field.
Gonzaga has won 17 straight meetings against San Diego dating back to 2014 and is 20-0 in the McCarthey Athletic Center. The Bulldogs are 51-4 in the head-to-head series under Mark Few.
Here is the live updates recap:
FINAL: Gonzaga 101, San Diego 74
SECOND HALF:
Gonzaga 93, San Diego 70 (3:24): Both sides traded buckets down the stretch as the pace intensified. Jun Seok Yeo knocked down a midrange jumper for his first field goal since Dec. 20 against Jackson State. Nembhard found Huff down low on an inbounds play the ensuing Gonzaga possession. Meanwhile the Toreros refused to quit behind Turner and Hayes.
Gonzaga 87, San Diego 59 (7:35): Gonzaga pulled away from San Diego with some help off the bench from Gregg, who scored nine straight points himself including a fastbreak dunk courtesy of a dime from Nembhard. Nembhard drilled back-to-back 3-pointers later to soften the Torero's zone defense.
Gonzaga 70, San Diego 46 (11:53): Bulldogs went on an 11-3 scoring run after struggling out of the gate. Stromer showcased some hustle with an athletic putback on a missed 3-pointer from Gregg.
Gonzaga 61, San Diego 43 (15:44): Bulldogs came out of the locker room a little sluggish, as they missed seven of their first 10 field goal attempts. Turner knocked down two 3-pointers to get the Toreros offense going. San Diego started 6-of-11 from beyond the arc.
HALFTIME: Gonzaga 55, San Diego 35: Hickman and Ike powered the Bulldogs to one of their more impressive first halves this season, as the two combined for 30 points and 12-for-19 shooting from the floor. The defense took away the middle of the floor from the Toreros on the other end, with eight live ball steals and 13 turnovers forced overall. Gonzaga scored 19 points off those San Diego miscues. Steven Jamerson led the other side at the half with nine points.
FIRST HALF:
Gonzaga 55, San Diego 31 (0:55): Bulldogs capitalized on the Toreros' carelessness with the ball, as Hickman intercepted an errant pass from Hayes and scored on the other end. On the ensuing inbound, Gregg recored his fourth steal and finished inside to extend Gonzaga's lead.
Gonzaga 45, San Diego 29 (3:51): Turner got flashy with an alley-oop from halfcourt to Patton Jr., who finished the play awkwardly over Watson. Ike got the bucket right back with his seventh field goal of the night courtesy of a bullet pass from Watson on the perimeter. A technical foul was assessed to San Diego's bench after the score.
Gonzaga 36, San Diego 20 (7:36): Watson hit Ike on a post-up down low for another score in the paint. Gonzaga started 14-of-22 from the field and 4-for-8 from behind the arc. Steven Jamerson got San Diego back on the scoreboard with an and-one finish over Nembhard, as the Toreros went nearly three minutes without a score in the first half.
Gonzaga 32, San Diego 18 (8:53): Gonzaga's defense clamped down on San Diego with 10 points scored off seven turnovers. Nembhard finished a fastbreak layup after Huff denied a layup attempts from Turner.
Gonzaga 23, Toreros 13 (11:39): Gonzaga rattled off a 9-0 scoring run to extend its lead to double-digits midway through the half. San Diego's zone defense hasn't shown much resistance, as the Bulldogs started 10-of-16 from the field and 3-for-5 from beyond the arc.
Gonzaga 14, Toreros 10 (15:27): Hickman and Turner exchanged 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions as both teams came out ready to shoot. After a turnaround jumper on the low block, Ike cleaned up a pass from Stromer in the key for another score inside.
Gonzaga 7, San Diego 5 (17:28): Bulldogs torched the Toreros' zone defense from the start with three-straight baskets. Watson got his team on the scoreboard first with a dunk from the baseline before knocking down a floater the next possession. Stromer netted a 3-pointer courtesy of an assist from Nembhard.
