Bulldogs Take Lead With Win

Having packed a century into five years, the Gonzaga University men’s basketball team has a chance to pack the opportunity of a lifetime into a single week.

The Bulldogs completed a rare road sweep Saturday night, rallying in the final 7 minutes to defeat the University of San Diego 69-59. The Bulldogs, 18-6 overall and 9-3 in the West Coast Conference, have sole possession of first place, at least until this afternoon, when Santa Clara, the only remaining challenger, plays Saint Mary’s for a share of the lead.

By defeating the San Francisco Dons on Thursday and the Toreros on Saturday, Gonzaga earned its 100th victory in the last five seasons.

Gonzaga will come home for the final week of the West Coast Conference season, aiming for two victories and the conference title.

Coach Dan Fitzgerald’s club will play Saint Mary’s on Thursday and Santa Clara on Saturday to close out the regular season.

Saturday, Lorenzo Rollins scored 17 points and point guard Kyle Dixon, his backcourt running mate, had 15 to fuel Gonzaga’s latest comeback.

The Bulldogs, who trailed 25-13 at one point in the first half, took a 55-54 lead on a pair of Jon Kinloch free throws with 7:02 to play. GU went on to score 16 of the last 21 points to cap the latest of several second-half comebacks.

“I’m so proud of these kids,” Fitzgerald said. “The one thing this team has been all year is resilient. We played as hard down as the stretch as a team can play.”

After Gonzaga edged into the lead, Paul Rogers added a pair of free throws over a 2-minute span before Kinloch put in a basket that made it 59-54 with 4:22 to play.

Then, Rollins, who has become a major offensive threat during the final month of the season, scored at 3:29 and drilled a 3-pointer at 2:01 to make it 64-58 and the ballgame.

Dixon added five assists to his scoring output. It was his 3-pointer that helped the Bulldogs pull within three points at 35-32 at intermission.

Brock Jacobsen led San Diego with 16 points. By hitting 4 of 5 shots at one point, he almost single-handedly kept the Toreros in the game once Gonzaga began to roll.

“There’s a long way to go,” Fitzgerald cautioned. “But I’ll tell you. Once again, our kids retained their poise and made big plays late. We just hope they can keep it up.”

Saturday’s game with Santa Clara, which could decide the title, will be televised by Prime Sports Northwest.

Gonzaga 69, San Diego 59

Gonzaga (18-6) - Rogers 4-7 4-9 12, Kinloch 2-5 3-3 7, Snider 5-6 2-3 12, Dixon 5-9 3-7 15, Rollins 6-16 2-2 17, K. Williams 1-2 0-0 2, Morgan 2-5 0-0 4, Nemeth 0-0 0-0 0, Leasure 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 25-51 14-24 69.

San Diego (10-13) - Hill 2-2 0-0 5, Miles 5-10 3-6 14, Raffo 1-1 0-0 2, Jacobsen 6-10 2-2 16, Fizdale 4-10 2-2 11, Mutrie 0-0 0-0 0, Smith 0-3 0-0 0, Speech 1-4 1-2 3, R. Williams 1-2 0-0 3, Bruso 1-5 1-2 3, Obasohan 1-9 0-0 2. Totals 22-56 9-14 59.

Halftime-San Diego 35, Gonzaga 32. 3-Point goals-Gonzaga 5-9 (Rollins 3-6, Dixon 2-2, K. Williams 0-1), San Diego 6-17 (Jacobsen 2-4, Hill 1-1, Miles 1-1, R. Williams 1-1, Fizdale 1-5, Smith 0-1, Obasohan 0-4). Fouled out-None. Rebounds- Gonzaga 34 (Rogers 8), San Diego 34 (Miles 10). Assists-Gonzaga 16 (Snider, Dixon 5), San Diego 13 (Fizdale 6). Total fouls- Gonzaga 11, San Diego 19. A-2,231.