NCAA basketball

Maybe it was the emotion from the week and everything that led up Saturday afternoon to the Pink Game, dedicated to cancer awareness.

The first half started with Khalif Battle hitting consecutive 3-pointers and ended with Battle drilling a step-back jumper to beat the buzzer. In between, Gonzaga piled up 19 assists – 10 by Ryan Nembhard in another record-setting performance – and through the first 13-plus minutes had more assists (15) than Pepperdine had points (13). Midway through the half, GU was shooting 75% and led by 20. It was that kind of night for Gonzaga’s offense and Pepperdine’s defense as the Zags cruised to a 107-55 West Coast Conference victory Saturday at the McCarthey Athletic Center.

PULLMAN – David Riley may not enjoy the film of Washington State’s last game against Saint Mary’s, an 80-75 setback on Jan. 25, but he’s learned a lot from it. As the game entered crunch time, with the Cougars trying to stay afloat in time for a comeback, the Gaels stayed in front in large part by scoring via isolation plays.

Mark Few’s coaching résumé consists of 735 career victories, 24 NCAA Tournaments, two national championship appearances and 14 West Coast Conference Coach of the Year honors.

SAN FRANCISCO — It’s about 50 miles and a trip across the Golden Gate Bridge to get from the Chase Center in downtown San Francisco to the campus of Sonoma State.

Chris Gerlufsen was pleased with the developments of the first five minutes of Thursday’s West Coast Conference game between his San Francisco Dons and the Gonzaga Bulldogs.

On Thursday night, Graham Ike and Ryan Nembhard were Gonzaga's top scorer, each contributing 18 points to a 88-77 win over San Francisco that catapulted the Zags into second place in the West Coast Conference.

Feel free to play along: Which game might Gonzaga be tempted to overlook in its rugged closing stretch of the regular season. A). Pepperdine. B). Washington State. C). Saint Mary’s. D). Santa Clara. E). San Francisco. Trick question: The correct answer is F). None of the above, not if the Zags want to make a run at the West Coast Conference title and secure their NCAA Tournament credentials.

Go down Moe Odum’s game-by-game statistics and good luck finding one better than his 24-point, eight-assist effort in a surprisingly close 89-82 loss to Gonzaga in late December in Malibu. There are several other worthy candidates, but Odum’s 24 points was a career best, and every point came during the Waves’ spirited second-half rally.

Gonzaga found a way to survive in overtime Thursday, and it may go down as the Zags women’s basketball team’s most gutty effort of the season.

PULLMAN – Ethan Price was hanging out with friends at Twigs, a restaurant and bar combo on the third floor of Spokane’s River Park Square mall, when he got the call that changed his career’s trajectory.

PULLMAN – The Washington State women’s basketball team used a strong defensive performance to down Loyola Marymount 63-51 on Thursday in a West Coast Conference game at Beasley Coliseum.

More times than not this season, Gonzaga’s been able to bank on consistent scoring production from forward Graham Ike and quality distribution from point guard Ryan Nembhard.

Maddox Monson remembers clearly the moment he was informed that his father, Dan Monson, was no longer going to be his basketball coach.

Some of coach Mark Few’s concerns may have been eased on Thursday during a pivotal matchup between Gonzaga and the team sitting a half-game above the Zags in the West Coast Conference standings.

Grant Hill has been traveling quite a bit, presenting players, coaches and staff with Olympic rings in recognition of USA Basketball’s gold medal performance at the 2024 Summer Games in Paris. The latest stop brought Hill to the McCarthey Athletic Center to deliver a ring to Gonzaga coach Mark Few just minutes before Thursday's tip-off against San Francisco. Few joined Tyronn Lue and Erik Spoelstra as assistants on Steve Kerr’s staff. Only the players received gold medals.

Three observations from Gonzaga’s 88-77 win over San Francisco on Thursday at the McCarthey Athletic Center.

MOSCOW, Idaho – Your casual Idaho basketball fan divides Kolton Mitchell’s career as BNC and ANC – Before Northern Colorado and After Northern Colorado, when Mitchell scored 25 points and made a 30-foot last-second winning shot against the Big Sky Conference-leading Bears Jan. 23 that became an ESPN play of the day.

Once Gonzaga players returned to the locker room after pulling away for a 20-point win over Loyola Marymount last Thursday, it probably took only a minute or two for word to spread about another result in the West Coast Conference.