Malachi Smith leads Gonzaga over Portland State in opening round of Phil Knight Invitational

Six Zags scored in double figures, led by Smith's 23 points off the bench

The No. 6 Gonzaga Bulldogs (4-1) tipped off the PK85 tournament with a resounding 102-78 win over the Portland State Vikings (2-3) on Thanksgiving night. Malachi Smith paced the Zags off the bench with 23 points.

Gonzaga started 7-for-11 from the field to start the game, while the Vikings also found the bottom of the basket consistently. Timme knocked down back-to-back layups to give his squad an eight-point lead through the halfway point in the first half. Gonzaga led by double-digits following two free throws from Rasir Bolton.

The Bulldogs led by as many as 25 points in the first half after Smith knocked down one of his five 3-pointers with five minutes left in the first half. The former Southern Conference Player of the Year had his best game of the young season, which is a great sign for Gonzaga's depth.

Gonzaga's guards moved the ball well to start the game, with 13 of its 17 made field goals coming off assists. Hunter Sallis off the bench, as well as Bolton, contributed three of those assists as the primary playmakers in the offense.

The Zags’ offense felt little resistance against the Vikings’ defense in the first half, as Mark Few’s squad knocked down a season-high 65.6% of its shots, including 8-for-14 from beyond the arc. Portland State, despite having a top-30 offense in terms of tempo entering the night, struggled to shoot 11-for-29 while committing eight turnovers in the process.

As a result, the Zags jumped out to a 55-31 lead heading into the locker room.

Smith and Bolton paced the Bulldogs in scoring in the first half with 11 apiece, while Julian Strawther knocked down a pair of 3-pointers to help his squad build a 24-point lead.

Jorel Saterfield paced the Vikings with 21 points on 7-for-15 shooting from the field. Cameron Parker added 16 points for the Vikings.

Six Zags scored in double figures, including Timme who poured in 18, followed by Bolton’s 14 points on 5-for-9 from the field.

The Zags scored 21 points off of Portland State's 13 turnovers.

Gonzaga's bench racked up a season-high 41 points on 16-for-22 shooting from the field.

The Zags will play No. 24 Purdue (4-0) in the semifinals Friday night at 8:30 p.m. PST. The game will be televised on ESPN.