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December 11, 2010 in Sports
Zags’ rally falls short at Notre Dame
Notre Dame guard Ben Hansbrough, right, heads up court as Gonzaga guard Steven Gray defends.
(Full-size photo)
The Gonzaga Bulldogs staged a furious rally in the closing minutes but it wasn’t enough to catch No.23 Notre Dame, which used Ben Hansbrough’s four late free throws to preserve an 83-79 men’s basketball victory Saturday at the Joyce Center in South Bend, Ind.
The loss was Gonzaga’s third straight. That hasn’t happened since GU lost to Connecticut, Portland State and Utah in December 2008. Four of Gonzaga’s five losses have been to ranked opponents.
Still, there were some encouraging signs for Gonzaga, which was coming off a dismal 81-59 loss to Washington State on Wednesday. The Bulldogs (4-5) made more than 50 percent of their shots in each half and committed just nine turnovers, compared to 25 against WSU.
“Obviously we played a lot harder and competed far, far better than we did the other night,” Gonzaga head coach Mark Few said. “That’s all we were asking of our guys. It was a tough environment, just like the other night, but we stepped up and especially competed at the offensive end and did a nice job on the glass. We just didn’t quite finish off plays on defense.”
Notre Dame (9-1) became the fifth team this season to make double-digit 3-pointers against the Bulldogs, connecting on 11 of 20. GU also made 11 of 20 from beyond the arc, including three in the final 90 seconds.
Gonzaga chipped away at a six-point halftime deficit, pulling into a tie at 50 on Marquise Carter’s steal and layup. Tim Abromaitis hit consecutive 3-pointers against Gonzaga’s 2-3 zone and he took a feed under the hoop for a dunk, giving the Irish a 58-50 lead.
Guard Eric Atkins scored the last five points in an 18-4 burst that gave Notre Dame a 68-54 lead with 8 minutes remaining.
The Bulldogs didn’t go quietly. Manny Arop’s 3 cut Notre Dame’s lead to eight with 1:25 left. Elias Harris made two free throws and Gonzaga’s press forced a turnover that led to Steven Gray’s 3-pointer. GU trailed 75-70 with 1 minute left.
Notre Dame misfired at the free-throw line, making 2 of 6 when Gonzaga was forced to foul. Arop banked in a 3-pointer and Notre Dame’s lead was 79-77. Hansbrough hit two free throws with 11.6 seconds left.
After a Carter layup, Gonzaga fouled Hansbrough again and the senior guard made two free throws with 2.7 seconds remaining.
Four Gonzaga starters (Harris, Gray, Robert Sacre and Demetri Goodson) fouled out in the final 35 seconds. Harris, limited to 24 minutes with foul problems, equaled his season-high with 19 points. Gray hit five 3s and scored 18 points to go with eight assists. Sacre had a season-high 16 points and six rebounds. Arop added a career-best 16 points and five rebounds.
Notre Dame senior forward Carleton Scott made three 3s en route to a career-high 23 points, 19 coming in the first half. Abromaitis had 21 points and Hansbrough contributed 13.
“They’ve got a nice team,” Few said. “It reminds me of some of the old teams we had at Gonzaga – veteran, senior led, shoot it at all five spots, really move it and kind of take advantage of whatever defensive mistake you make. When you can score at all five spots like that, it’s tough to stop.”
Gonzaga entertains Lewis-Clark State College on Thursday.
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Halcomb collects WCC honor 
Jimmy on December 11 at 10:31 p.m.
Coach Few’s uninspired leadership is greatly affecting his team. They have no swagger, no passion, no attitude and no cohesion. However, what they do have is a losing record.
RickS on December 11 at 10:57 p.m.
So the coach who came into the season as the winningest active D-1 coach is at fault? No possibility that developing a senior leader out of a player who’s laid back personal style has created questions about commitment throughout his amateur career, or a squad that frequently seems unable to stop runs without wasting early timeouts for hand-holding by the coach, or a schedule absent an extended break to work on themselves rather than constantly prepping for the next game could be presenting that coach with some new challenges that might have to be sorted out later in the season than usual?
Just checking.
Rick
Dazzeetrader11 on December 11 at 11:07 p.m.
I watched this game. I was shocked to see the Zags hold pretty even with Notre Dame at their home court. One thing that stood out was the foul shot attempts. 36 for ND and only 12 for the Zags. I do think ND won because of the fouls called on GU.
Big big imbalance.
SeeRed on December 11 at 11:30 p.m.
Daisy less talented teams generally foul more often due to being out of position or simply being over matched. Nothing more than a better team being more disciplined and more talented, thus getting to the line more.
oneanddone on December 12 at 4:48 a.m.
Ewwwwww … basketball is SUCH a suckass sport.
blotto on December 12 at 10:54 a.m.
Get off of Few’s back! After his many successful seasons he’s all of a sudden become a mediocre coach?! Sounds like many of the nouveau fans who discovered basketball after the new facility was built and discovered this was the place to be seen in Spokane are showing their ignorance. All programs over the years have down seasons.Yes, even Duke & Carolina. Have you followed UCLA lately? Inexperience plus their schedule are the reasons for their struggles. They’ll be back.
sbaran on December 13 at 4:34 a.m.
I’m with blotto. The season will get better as the Zags gel more as a team.
spokaneboy26 on December 14 at 12:37 a.m.
BRING IN BOBBY KNIGHT!!!!! everyone loves mark few and it makes me sick…..its easy to coach a team with endless talent and a terrible conference WCC (weak coast conference). if bob knight was coaching gonzaga would have already played in a national title if not won!!!!! the first season that coaching is key, i see few sitting clueless on what to do on the sideline!!!!GO COUGS!!!!!