Bolton's 20 points lead No. 2 Gonzaga over Pacific 89-51
AP
Feb 11, 2022
SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) Rasir Bolton scored 20 points, Drew Timme added 13 points and 10 rebounds, and No. 2 Gonzaga Bulldogs beat Pacific Tigers 89-51 on Thursday night for its 13th consecutive victory.
Julian Strawther had 15 points and Chet Holmgren scored 14 for Gonzaga (20-2, 9-0 West Coast Conference), which has won 65 consecutive home games - the longest streak in the nation.
''Rasir was terrific,'' Bulldogs coach Mark Few said. ''Drew was really active and delivering early. ... We had an intensity about us.''
Alphonso Anderson had 16 points and Sam Freeman scored 12 for Pacific (7-17, 2-7), which was coming off a 74-68 loss at No. 21 Southern California on Tuesday in which it led for much of the game.
There was no such performance on this night, as Pacific shot just 31% from the field, including 3 for 21 from 3-point range. The Tigers scored only 23 points in the second half.
''We didn't allow a bunch of easy buckets in the second half,'' Few said. ''The defensive numbers were better in the second half than the first.''
Gonzaga jumped out to a 26-10 lead in the first nine minutes behind seven points from Strawther.
Gonzaga led 46-28 at halftime after getting 12 points from Holmgren and 11 from Timme. Pacific was held to 37% shooting in the first half, including 1 of 13 from 3-point range.
Timme has had trouble scoring early in some recent games.
''I finally started to make some shots today and it's about damn time,'' he said. ''It's great - we win by 30 and everybody scores.''
A 10-0 run early in the second half lifted Gonzaga to a 56-30 lead.
Pacific missed its first 15 shots after halftime and Gonzaga put together a 16-0 spurt to open a 74-34 bulge.
Anderson scored Pacific's first field goal of the second half with 7:57 left.
''I couldn't be more proud of how my guys played,'' Pacific coach Leonard Perry said. ''They battled and battled through the entire game.''
POLL IMPLICATIONS
Top-ranked Auburn's loss to Arkansas on Tuesday opened the door for Gonzaga to possibly return to No. 1 on Monday.
SUGGS RETURNS
Former Gonzaga star Jalen Suggs, hero of last year's NCAA Tournament semifinal win over UCLA, attended the game and sat in the raucous student section for some of the first half. Suggs now plays for the Orlando Magic in the NBA.
''It feels so good to be back,'' he told reporters.
Few noted that Suggs in his one season at Gonzaga never got to experience a game in front of the noisy fans because of the coronavirus pandemic. ''He never had that in his college career,'' Few said. ''He played in front of empty stands.''
''It was pretty special and pretty cool,'' Timme said of Suggs' attendance.
BIG PICTURE
Pacific: The Tigers did not have the firepower to compete with Gonzaga and fell to 1-20 all-time against the Bulldogs.
Gonzaga: The Bulldogs have won 30 straight conference games dating to a 2020 loss at BYU. ... Gonzaga has won at least 20 games for 25 consecutive seasons. ... The Bulldogs lead the nation in scoring (90 ppg) and shooting (53.6%).
UP NEXT
Pacific plays at San Diego on Saturday.
Gonzaga hosts rival No. 22 Saint Mary's on Saturday in a widely anticipated showdown. ''They are always a hard opponent to play,'' Timme said. ''They come to play and they always pose a big challenge to us.''
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1st Half
UOP
Tigers
28
GONZ
Bulldogs
46
Time
Team
Play
Score
20:00
Jeremiah Bailey vs. Chet Holmgren (Drew Timme gains possession)
19:47
Drew Timme misses two point hook shot
19:45
Alphonso Anderson defensive rebound
19:27
Pierre Crockrell II misses two point jump shot
19:25
Andrew Nembhard defensive rebound
19:17
+2
Drew Timme makes two point layup
0-2
19:17
Jeremiah Bailey shooting foul (Drew Timme draws the foul)
19:17
+1
Drew Timme makes regular free throw 1 of 1
0-3
18:56
+2
Alphonso Anderson makes two point layup
2-3
18:46
+2
Drew Timme makes two point layup (Chet Holmgren assists)
2-5
18:32
+2
Pierre Crockrell II makes two point jump shot
4-5
18:21
+3
Rasir Bolton makes three point jump shot (Andrew Nembhard assists)
4-8
18:04
Alphonso Anderson misses three point jump shot
18:02
Andrew Nembhard defensive rebound
17:50
+2
Rasir Bolton makes two point layup
4-10
17:36
Jeremiah Bailey misses three point jump shot
17:34
Rasir Bolton defensive rebound
17:31
Khaleb Wilson-Rouse blocks Rasir Bolton's two point layup
17:29
Bulldogs offensive rebound
17:24
+2
Julian Strawther makes two point jump shot
4-12
17:13
Tigers 30 second timeout
16:55
+2
Alphonso Anderson makes two point layup
6-12
16:44
+2
Chet Holmgren makes two point jump shot
6-14
16:27
Pierre Crockrell II turnover (double dribble)
16:15
+3
Julian Strawther makes three point jump shot (Rasir Bolton assists)
6-17
15:58
Sam Freeman misses two point layup
15:56
Rasir Bolton defensive rebound
15:46
Andrew Nembhard misses three point jump shot
15:43
Bulldogs offensive rebound
15:43
TV timeout
15:38
+2
Julian Strawther makes two point layup (Drew Timme assists)
6-19
15:22
Alphonso Anderson misses two point jump shot
15:20
Julian Strawther defensive rebound
15:13
Chet Holmgren turnover (bad pass)
14:42
Alphonso Anderson misses two point jump shot
14:40
Julian Strawther defensive rebound
14:26
Andrew Nembhard misses three point jump shot
14:24
Sam Freeman defensive rebound
14:10
+2
Sam Freeman makes two point jump shot
8-19
14:10
Chet Holmgren shooting foul (Sam Freeman draws the foul)
14:10
Sam Freeman misses regular free throw 1 of 1
14:10
Drew Timme defensive rebound
13:51
Drew Timme misses two point jump shot
13:49
Khaleb Wilson-Rouse defensive rebound
13:32
Drew Timme blocks Jeremiah Bailey's two point layup
13:30
Julian Strawther defensive rebound
13:20
+3
Andrew Nembhard makes three point jump shot
8-22
13:09
Luke Avdalovic misses three point jump shot
13:07
Chet Holmgren defensive rebound
13:00
Andrew Nembhard turnover (lost ball) (Pierre Crockrell II steals)
12:51
Khaleb Wilson-Rouse offensive foul (Andrew Nembhard draws the foul)