Zags Switch It On Santangelo Lights Up New Scoreboard

After pulling Matt Santangelo from Thursday night’s game with just under 4 minutes remaining, Gonzaga coach Dan Monson met his junior guard in front of the Bulldogs’ bench with a forceful handshake and sincere smile.

“Welcome back, big fella,” he said.

Santangelo had just closed up shop after breaking out of a season-long shooting funk with 28 points in Gonzaga’s 105-78 blitz of Loyola Marymount.

It was the West Coast Conference basketball opener for both teams and the night on which the university officially dedicated the new scoreboard system and video screen at Martin Centre.

Santangelo, from the opening tip, seemed driven to test all three digits on the home team’s side of the scoreboards. And so did his teammates.

GU opened with a remarkable run that included some eerily accurate shooting. The Bulldogs made their first eight shots - including five 3-pointers - and 17 of their first 19 in racing to a 42-21 lead with 8 minutes left in the first half. They finished 38 of 60 (63.3 percent) from the field and 12 of 22 from 3-point range.

Santangelo, a 6-foot-1 native of Portland, made the first shot of the game - a 3-pointer - to ignite an 8-0 Gonzaga start and finished 10 of 14 from the field. He made 5 of 7 3-pointers as the Bulldogs (11-4) scorched the outmanned Lions (5-7) early and often.

“I was really happy for him,” Monson said of Santangelo, who came into the game shooting just 35.1 percent on the year. “He had been struggling, but it was just a matter of time before he found his rhythm.

“Tonight, he was back to being the Matt Santangelo we all know he’s capable of being.”

Santangelo, a natural point guard who is playing out of position at the off-guard to accommodate senior Quentin Hall, admitted he has been frustrated by the disappearance of his normally reliable shooting stroke.

“That’s something I’ve always been able to do, is knock down the jump shot,” he said. “I’ve been in a slump since the year started - maybe since the summer, even. This last week, I’ve been really trying to get in (the gym) and put in a lot of extra work - hundreds of jump shots a day like I used to do.

“I’m just hoping that it’s going to pay off, and it did for me tonight.”

Santangelo had plenty of offensive help from a large supporting cast.

Richie Frahm finished with 21 points and reserve forward Axel Dench added 16, along with a game-high nine rebounds, after replacing starter Casey Calvary, who went down with an ankle sprain 5 minutes into the game.

Calvary, the WCC’s leading rebounder, turned his right ankle while working the boards and is listed as questionable for Saturday’s 7 p.m. home showdown against Pepperdine. The veteran Waves are expected to be the biggest hurdle in GU’s defense of its regular-season WCC title. “Minus the Calvary injury, it was a great game for us,” said Monson. “But that’s a major concern for us right now with one of the best teams in our league coming in.

“We’re just going to hold our breath and see how it goes the next two days.”

Calvary’s early departure was not a factor in Thursday’s outcome. After its quick start, GU used a 45-31 rebounding advantage and sticky man-to-man defense to keep Loyola on its heels.

The Lions were down 73-39 with less than 5 minutes gone in the second half and made the score respectable only by heating up from the outside late in the game, when the Bulldogs switched to a soft zone.

GU 105, Loyola Marymount 78

Loyola Marymount (5-8, 1-0) - Eaddy 5-12 4-4 17, Allen 3-10 5-6 12, Kainga 3-7 0-0 6, Mashack 0-4 2-2 2, Wolfe 5-10 0-2 12, Saucedo 0-2 0-0 0, Evelyn 0-0 0-0 0, Slaughter 1-1 0-0 3, Moore 0-0 1-2 1, Kennedy 5-11 1-2 14, Davis 1-7 2-2 5, McClendon 3-5 0-4 6. Totals 26-69 15-24 78.

Gonzaga (11-4, 1-0) - Hall 5-10 2-2 13, Santangelo 10-14 3-5 28, Calvary 0-1 0-0 0, Frahm 7-12 4-4 21, Eaton 4-7 1-2 9, Spink 2-2 3-6 7, Nilson 1-1 2-2 4, Leasure 1-1 0-0 2, Dench 7-10 0-0 16, Floyd 1-2 2-2 5. Totals 38-60 17-23 105.

Halftime-Gonzaga 57, Loyola Marymount 34. 3-Point goals-Loyola Marymount 11-27 (Kennedy 3-5, Eaddy 3-7, Wolfe 2-4, Slaughter 1-1, Allen 1-4, Davis 1-4, Mashack 0-1, Saucedo 0-1), Gonzaga 12-22 (Santangelo 5-7, Frahm 3-5, Dench 2-3, Floyd 1-2, Hall 1-5). Fouled out-None. Rebounds-Loyola Marymount 31 (Kennedy 6), Gonzaga 45 (Dench 9). Assists-Loyola Marymount 12 (Allen 4), Gonzaga 20 (Hall 9). Total fouls-Loyola Marymount 21, Gonzaga 21. A-3,911.