Thomas Clouse

In a game described as “ugly” and “a grinder” by players, the No. 24 Gonzaga women’s basketball team fought for enough rebounds Saturday to overcome poor shooting to beat the Portland Pilots 72-61 at the McCarthey Athletic Center. With the win, the Bulldogs (24-4, 14-2 WCC) captured at least a share of its 10th consecutive West Coast Conference championship. But neither coach Kelly Graves nor the players cut down the nets or celebrated.

In a game described as “ugly” and “a grinder” by players, the No. 24 Gonzaga women’s basketball team fought for enough rebounds Saturday to overcome poor shooting to beat the Portland Pilots 72-61 at the McCarthey Athletic Center.

Picked to win the Big Sky Conference, the Eastern Washington Eagles went from soaring favorites to the stark reality of dealing with young players and an injury to a key senior. The Eagles crashed to earth with a 0-5 start to the nonconference season and sputtered to a 4-5 record to start conference play. But coach Wendy Schuller inserted a familiar name to the starting lineup and the Eagles have started winning.

Picked to win the Big Sky Conference, the Eastern Washington Eagles went from soaring favorites to the stark reality of dealing with young players and an injury to a key senior.

The gyrating mass of humanity at Gonzaga University men’s basketball games creates a wall of sound, felt as much as heard. Twelve-hundred rabid students jumping in unison on mobile bleachers inside McCarthey Athletic Center send pile-driving shocks that reverberate through concrete. Whipped into a frenzy before tip-off, the Kennel Club represents the beating heart of a program that has become inextricably linked to Spokane’s identity.

The Whitworth men’s basketball team started hot and never let up as it thrashed the visiting Linfield Wildcats in a game that never was one. Sophomore forward George Valle dribbled in the paint, reversed and then hit the game’s opening bucket. It just took a couple more hours to decide the final tally Friday night: 91-59.

The Whitworth men’s basketball team started hot and never let up as it thrashed the visiting Linfield Wildcats in a game that never was one.

Three of the four area Division I women’s basketball teams are trending upward and one wants to give a little payback to the school that started it on a 1-6 skid. Last month, Washington State (12-12, 6-6) appeared to find itself when it raced out to a 5-0 record in the Pac-12. And, it had an upcoming home game against a Utah squad that at the time was 8-9 and 0-5 in the conference.

In a game in which Loyola Marymount never challenged, the No. 20 Gonzaga women’s basketball team raced Saturday to an overpowering 88-51 victory. The same team that took the Bulldogs to overtime on Jan. 23 in Los Angeles looked overmatched in every aspect of the game as Gonzaga (22-3, 12-1 West Coast Conference) cruised to its 12th straight victory.

In a game in which Loyola Marymount never challenged, the No. 20 Gonzaga women’s basketball team raced Saturday to an overpowering 88-51 victory.

In a game in which four players scored in double figures, and two more came close, the No. 20 Gonzaga women’s basketball team cruised to an overpowering 86-51 win over Pepperdine on Thursday at McCarthey Athletic Center. Senior guard Haiden Palmer came two assists away from a triple-double, prompting coach Kelly Graves to jokingly ask his team who missed the two shots that would have completed the feat.

In a game where four players scored in double figures, and two more came close, the No. 20 Gonzaga women’s basketball team cruised to an overpowering 86-51 win over Pepperdine on Thursday at McCarthey Athletic Center.

Sometimes coaches throw out several combinations of players to find a crew that works together. Last year, Idaho women’s basketball coach Jon Newlee started three freshmen, a sophomore and a junior. He decided that he would stick with that group as they learned, sometimes through failure, how to play with each other.

Although they had trouble securing a halftime lead, the No. 22 Gonzaga women’s basketball team exploded in the second half Saturday to bury visiting San Francisco 101-66.

An early tight game turned into a statement game for the Whitworth Pirates and a freshman wing from Australia, who came off the bench to score a season-high 29 points in an 87-58 win over Willamette.

Scrapping its way out of an early deficit, the No. 22 Gonzaga women’s basketball team turned on the jets Thursday night and raced away for a dominating 89-37 victory over the visiting Santa Clara Broncos. The game marked the ninth time this season the Bulldogs (19-3, 9-1), which coach Kelly Graves has called his best defensive team, has held an opponent at or less than 47 points. And it was the fifth time Gonzaga has held opponents to 40 points or less.