Zags Rise To Occasion, Top T-Birds

In recent seasons, Gonzaga’s scoring seemed to come predominately from the perimeter - that expanse outside the 3-point arc.

That has changed.

Now, it appears that the area of the gym GU will dominate is that space between the rim and the roof.

In a 77-60 non-conference men’s basketball win over a stubborn Southern Utah team Saturday night in the Martin Centre, the Bulldogs exploited a distinct height advantage and prospered from the 18 points of 6-foot-9 center Scott Snider and 17 from 7-foot forward Paul Rogers.

Four of Snider’s eight baskets were thunderous dunks, while Rogers also pulled down 11 rebounds.

Snider’s slamming style was on display with regularity: He generally elevates - shedding clinging defenders as he rises - and pulls his knees up to near rim level as he force-feeds it. Very emphatic.

Rogers, meanwhile, adds a degree of difficulty, such as his two-handed reverse slam on a breakaway.

“That’s their game - they’re going to work it in to their big guys,” SUU coach Bill Evans said. “They are very patient, work their stuff and eventually they got a couple big runs on us.”

The game plan seemed obvious as the Thunderbirds (1-3) took the floor with a front line that went 6-5, 6-5 and 6-4. In contrast, for much of the game, the Bulldogs had four on the floor that stood 6-6 and taller.

But this was not an obvious walkover, as SUU, with very steady ball-handling, took a 43-42 lead 3 minutes into the second half.

Over the subsequent 12 minutes, though, the Bulldogs continually got it in to Rogers and Snider as a 23-5 scoring run put the game out of reach.

“We had an obvious height advantage, but in the first half, we just took the first shot that was open,” said Snider, whose 18 points amounted to a career high. “In the second half, we were more patient and worked it in for better shots.”

One key play in that span came when point guard Kyle Dixon hit the floor to make a steal and got the ball to Rogers breaking wide open down the floor. Rogers’ spinning jam gave GU a 3-point lead.

“We had a couple of big defensive plays and that’s what got us going,” said GU coach Dan Fitzgerald, whose team improved to 2-1. “One of them was that steal and dunk.”

After his team’s shaky effort against Central Washington on Thursday, Fitzgerald was a bit relieved to see what he called “40 minutes of pretty darn good defense.”

“This was better,” he said. “Not good enough to contend, but definitely better. The frustrating part was that we weren’t efficient enough offensively in the first half and that hurt us defensively.”

Two Thunderbirds - Jon Gaines and Daryl Christopher - got 19 points each, although it took a lot of shots to do it as SUU finished with a chilly 34.9-percentage from the field.

Gaines, the former prep Mr. Basketball of Colorado, was held in check by a variety of Bulldogs - including the versatile Snider.

“We were getting broken down a little in the first half and we were just looking to run a crisp offense in the second half,” Rogers said. “I felt we played a lot better, especially at the end when we were able to put them away. They’re a dangerous team, they almost upset Arizona State and if they hang around they could beat you.”

Dixon finished with 14 points and seven assists with no turnovers.

Gonzaga 77, S. Utah 60

S. UTAH (1-3)

Ingram 3-13 2-4 9, Christopher 8-19 2-2 19, Caton 1-4 0-0 2, Gaines 5-11 7-8 19, Bodily 1-2 0-0 0, Good 0-1 0-0 0, Crosbie 2-8 0-0 4, Richards 1-1 0-0 3, Covington 0-0 0-0 0, Faux 1-4 0-0 2. Totals 22-63 11-14 60.

GONZAGA (2-1)

Dixon 4-5 6-8 14, Williams 1-4 0-0 2, Snider 8-11 2-4 18, Rogers 7-9 3-3 17, Kinloch 2-7 1-2 7, Rollins 4-6 0-0 9, Leasure 1-1 4-6 6, Ball 0-0 0-0 0, Kincaid 1-1 0-0 0, Hendrix 0-0 0-0 0, Bond 0-1 0-0 0, Nemeth 0-1 2-2 2. Totals 28-46 18-25 77.

Halftime-Gonzaga 38, S. Utah 34. 3-Point goals-S. Utah 5-19 (Ingram 1-2, Christopher 1-9, Gaines 2-5, Richards 1-1), Gonzaga 3-9 (Kinloch 2-6, Rollins 1-2, Williams 0-1). Fouled out-Bodily. Rebounds-S. Utah 26 (Caton 5), Gonzaga 38 (Rogers 11). Assists-S. Utah 7 (Three at 2), Gonzaga 16 (Dixon 7). Total fouls- S. Utah 21, Gonzaga 15. A-2,844.

Idaho 95, Troy State 86

At Cape Girardeau, Mo., senior guard Shawn Dirden had 22 points and senior forward Harry Harrison added 19 points and 19 rebounds as the Vandals beat the Trojans in the consolation game of the Capital Bank Classic hosted by Southeast Missouri State.

Junior guard Reggie Rose had 15 points and reserve forward Jason Jackman added 17 points as Idaho improved to 2-1. Troy State fell to 1-3.

The Vandals managed to survive the aggressive defense and high-octane offense of the Trojans to pull away in the second half. Idaho led 40-38 at the break, but the Trojans took a 45-42 lead on two baskets by Padgett and Patrick Minifield and a 3-pointer by Derrick Bristol - all in the first 1:30 of the second half.

Forward James Jones hit his first 3-pointer of the year to tie the game and Harrison followed with a free throw to give the Vandals the lead for good.

IDAHO (95) James Jones 2-3 2-2 7, Harry Harrison 5-11 9-15 19, Nate Gardner 3-5 1-1 7, Reggie Rose 7-19 1-3 15, Shawn Dirden 8-13 4-6 22, Kris Baumann 0-0 0-0 0, Eddie Turner 2-6 1-2 6, Jason Jackman 7- 11 3-6 17, Marvin Thomas 1-2 0-2 2 Totals — 35-70 21-37 95

TROY STATE (86) Derrick Bristol 4-11 2-2 13, Matt Padgett 10-19 2-2 26, Jeff Black 3-8 1-3 7, Rhodney Donaldson 6-16 3-4 17, Chris Googe 0-2 0-0 0, Geoff Spann 0-4 0-0 0, Fred Bryant 1-3 3-3 5, Jermaine Ball 2-8 3-5 8, Patrick Minifield 4-15 1-2 10 Totals — 30-86 11-39 86

3-point goals — Idaho 4-11 (Jones 1-1, Rose 0-2, Dirden 2-6, Turner 1-2), Troy State 11-39 (Bristol 3-7, Padgett 4-7, Donaldson 2-9, Googe 0-2, Spann 0-1, Ball 1-7, Minifield 1-6). Fouled out — Harrison, Idaho. Bryant, Minifield, Troy State Rebounds — Idaho 59 (Harrison 19), Troy State 45 (Bristol 9). Assists — Idaho 12 (Rose, Turner 4), Troy State 17 (Ball 9). Total fouls — Idaho 20, Troy State 28. Technicals — none. A— 2,895

, DataTimes