What Gonzaga's Graham Ike, Khalif Battle said after WCC semifinal win vs. San Francisco

Ike and Battle combined for 48 points in the Bulldogs' win over the Dons to advance to the WCC championship game

Gonzaga Bulldogs forward Graham Ike (13). / Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

Graham Ike recorded his seventh double-double of the season while Khalif Battle added 21 points and four rebounds to help guide the Gonzaga men's basketball team to a win over San Francisco in the semifinal round of the West Coast Conference tournament held at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas.

Ike, about a week after being named to the All-WCC first team, lived up to his reputation and then some as he poured in a team-high 27 points and 10 rebounds. The 6-foot-9 forward established himself down low with four straight buckets to open the second half, followed later by back-to-back scores that pushed the Bulldogs' lead to six points with just over 6 minutes left in regulation after the Dons made it a 1-point game earlier in the half.

Battle helped get Gonzaga back in the driver's seat after halftime with some timely buckets coming out of the break, including a 3-pointer that made it 48-42 in favor of Gonzaga with 15:50 left to play. Later, a tough midrange jumper from Battle made it 54-49, which was then followed by more free throws and another triple that made it 59-53 with under 10 minutes to play.

Combining for 48 points, 14 rebounds and four steals, Ike and Battle propelled the Bulldogs to the WCC championship game for a 28th postseason in a row. Gonzaga faces No. 1 seed Saint Mary's tomorrow at 6 p.m. on ESPN for the right to claim the WCC tournament crown and an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.

Here's more from Ike and Battle after the game.

Battle on the team's effort defensively to slow down the Dons in crunch time:

"I don't really say too much about my scoring. I think we picked it up defensively in the second half. A lot of players made a lot of big plays, and they stepped up big time, my teammates, more of stepping up and being ready for the challenge, and we just gotta have a quick turnaround and get ready for Saint Mary's tomorrow."

Ike on coming through with a couple of big baskets after the Dons cut their deficit to one with 7 minutes remaining:

"It was just within the flow of the offense. We knew they kind of got close. We just had to stay resilient, keep pushing on, just keep staying together as a team and that's what we did."

Both on what needs to happen for Gonzaga to beat Saint Mary's in the WCC championship game:

Ike: "We got to play great defense, be methodical and be intentional on offense, and then really just have a great one-shot defense when you have to keep them off the offensive boards."

Battle: "Just a team effort. Really on the boards, they do a great job of crashing the offensive rebounds, slowing the game down. Then offensively I think everybody knows the Zags can put up scoring ... but it's just gonna come down to defense and offensive rebounding, and defensive rebounding. I'm excited about the matchup. We've been looking forward to this so, now it's time to get the job done."

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