NCAA basketball

Gonzaga, after a couple of weeks of slipping in the top 10 of the Associated Press poll, moved up one spot to No. 8 after a 2-0 week with a short-handed roster.

PULLMAN – Normally, David Riley likes to let his guys play, and let his players attack a defense that hasn’t gotten a chance to get set.

SEATTLE – Much has been made about the collective age and experience on Gonzaga’s roster this season.

PULLMAN – San Francisco used a hot-shooting spree in the fourth quarter to pull away for an 85-72 win over the Washington State women on Saturday in a West Coast Conference matchup at Beasley Coliseum.

SEATTLE – Gonzaga’s starting frontcourt took another injury hit that could leave the ninth-ranked Bulldogs shorthanded for the foreseeable future.

Mario Saint-Supery's 20 points paces No. 9 Gonzaga in win over Seattle U.

The Idaho men’s basketball team built a 19-point lead in the first half, let most of it slip, but held on for a Big Sky victory over Weber State at Dee Events Center in Ogden, Utah.

Eastern Washington shot out to a double-digit lead in the first four minutes of Saturday’s game and didn’t ease up, marching to perhaps its most impressive win of the season, an 84-66 rout of Idaho State in Big Sky Conference play at Reed Gym in Pocatello.

By every indication, the Gonzaga women’s basketball team played its best game of the season Saturday afternoon.

Mark Few and lead assistant Brian Michaelson have navigated just about every situation under the sun during their shared years at Gonzaga.Nothing like this week, though.

Gonzaga showed off its depth and bench strength and offered a lengthy glimpse at the future with freshmen Saint-Supery and Davis Fogle playing leading roles at Climate Pledge Arena.

Three takeaways at the buzzer from Gonzaga’s 71-50 West Coast Conference win over Seattle U on Saturday at Climate Pledge Arena.

SEATTLE – Gonzaga already has the full scoop on Junseok Yeo, but based on his recent production, the former Zag-turned-Seattle U forward will still be a central part of the game plan Mark Few and his coaching staff prepare for Saturday’s matchup between the Zags and Redhawks at Climate Pledge Arena (7 p.m., KHQ/ESPN+).

SEATTLE – It’s approximately 2½ miles from Seattle U’s campus in the Capitol Hill neighborhood to Climate Pledge Arena, but the Redhawks will hardly feel at home when No. 9 Gonzaga visits Saturday night for the second of two regular-season meetings between the West Coast Conference opponents.

PULLMAN – Braden Huff positioned himself at the far end of the playing surface at Beasley Coliseum. As Gonzaga players filed off the floor Thursday night, each passed right by Huff, who offered high fives, congratulatory handshakes and hugs before embarking on a slow trek via crutches to the visitor’s locker room.

PULLMAN – Whenever Washington State coaches and players head home after their last outing, an 86-65 defeat to No. 9 Gonzaga here on Thursday night, they will regret all manner of developments.

MORAGA, Calif. – Washington State’s women’s basketball team overcame a six-point deficit in the final minutes of regulation to force overtime, then outlasted Saint Mary’s in the extra period for a 68-64 West Coast Conference victory on Thursday night at UCU Pavilion.

POCATELLO, Idaho – Idaho State used a late run to pull away from Idaho and claim a win in the "Battle for King Spud" rivalry series.

Yeah, No. 9-ranked Gonzaga pulled away from a gritty first-half effort by Washington State on Thursday to move to 18-1. But that was nowhere near the headline from the night.