Julian Strawther continues to deliver, Zags get revenge: 3 takeaways from Gonzaga's win over Loyola Marymount
Nearly a month after Loyola Marymount stunned Gonzaga on its home floor, the Zags took full advantage of their chance to return the favor in Los Angeles on Thursday.
Powered by a 68-point first half, No. 13 Gonzaga (22-5, 11-2 WCC) cruised to a 108-65 victory over LMU (17-11, 7-7) at Gersten Pavilion.
Here are three observations from Gonzaga's impressive performance:
JULIAN STRAWTHER SHOOTS LIGHTS OUT FROM 3-POINT RANGE
Photo by Erik Smith, Myk Crawford
Strawther’s 3-point shooting ability has proved an asset for Gonzaga in a number of games this season.
Thursday was no exception, as Strawther sank 6-of-8 shots from beyond the 3-point line, including two made attempts while being fouled. He ended the night with 28 points on 9-of-14 shooting from the field in 28 minutes.
The junior guard scored 22 of his points in the first half, which propelled Gonzaga to an early 25-4 lead, which ballooned to 68-28 by halftime.
Strawther was coming off a 26-point showing against BYU, in which he nailed a pair of 3-pointers down the stretch to help his team rally from behind to win 88-81.
GONZAGA’S OFFENSE FIRES ON ALL CYLINDERS
After Gonzaga and LMU competed in a nail-biter in Spokane earlier in the season, Thursday’s matchup played out much differently.
The Zags never trailed, as they cruised to victory behind an efficient, high-scoring offense that seemed to overpower the Lions on almost every possession.
Gonzaga shot 60.6% from the field and 47.1% on 3-point attempts, with six players scoring in double digits.
Strawther's 28 points were a team-high, while Anton Watson had 16, Drew Timme and Malachi Smith had 13, Rasir Bolton had 12 and Nolan Hickman had 11.
“I mean that's what makes us so special — we have so many talented guys that can get going whenever, and we all have so much trust in each other and everybody's game,” Strawther said to the Spokesman-Review. “We share the ball well. Everybody looks for each other. It's beautiful basketball.”
With LMU being one of two WCC teams to defeat Gonzaga, Strawther didn't downplay the impact the loss had on the outcome of this game.
“I think ever since the buzzer sounded back in Spokane, we’ve been ready for this game and circled it on our calendar,” Strawther said. “We just wanted to return the favor and come back to their house and get a win in here.”
ZAGS LIMIT CAM SHELTON’S OFFENSIVE PRODUCTION
In the teams' first meeting, it was Cam Shelton's short runner off the backboard that gave LMU the victory.
Shelton finished with 26 points that night, but his usual scoring output was nowhere to be found this time around.
He finished with 15 points on 3-of-7 shooting in 31 minutes, receiving intense defensive pressure from Gonzaga.
Shelton didn't have a made field goal until just over a minute was left in the first half.
As a team, the Lions shot 46.2% from the field and 29.6% from the 3-point range.
“Our defense was good, it was probably as good as we’ve been all year,” said head coach Mark Few. “We put it together for a full 20 (minutes), then we kept our intensity even in the second half. … Great overall effort on both sides of the ball and it’s something we can really draw on moving forward.”
