Zags make point at Saint Mary’s

MORAGA, Calif. – It took them most of the evening, but the Gonzaga Bulldogs finally got around to making the statement – albeit it a modest one – that most experts expected them to make heading into the West Coast Conference portion of their men’s basketball schedule.

Facing a raucous, sellout crowd of 3,500 and a Saint Mary’s team that might be the second best in the WCC, the eighth-ranked Zags overcame a prolonged stretch of spotty shooting in the second half to turn back the Gaels 68-60 in Saturday’s conference opener for both teams at McKeon Pavilion.

Adam Morrison scored a game-high 25 points, Derek Raivio added 16 and J.P Batista chipped in 12 as the Bulldogs (11-3) – wearing their red road uniforms for the second time this season – opened their defense of last year’s regular-season WCC title by beating the Gaels (7-6) for the 21st time in the last 22 meetings of the schools.

“That was a great way to start off the league season,” Gonzaga coach Mark Few said afterward. “It was a hard-earned win over a team that is playing its best basketball of the year. We went into a hostile environment and wound up finding a way to get it done.

“And we got it done on the defensive end, which is a real good sign for us.”

The Bulldogs, who have struggled defensively, confounded the perimeter-oriented Gaels with a tough matchup-zone that allowed little in the way of uncontested shots. Saint Mary’s, which came in shooting 34.6 percent from 3-point range, made only six of the 27 treys they attempted and shot just 33.9 percent (21-62) from the field.

“They’re a good team,” Gaels coach Randy Bennett said of the Zags. “To beat them, you have to make baskets. And when you go 6 for 27 (from 3-point range), you’re not going to do it. It’s a different game if we make some shots.”

Daniel Kickert, a 6-foot-10 senior forward and returning all-WCC performer, led the Gaels in scoring with 18 points despite being in foul trouble much of the game. John Winston added 11 points and did an outstanding job defending Morrison in the second half. But down the stretch, GU made eight consecutive free throws to avert Saint Mary’s upset bid.

“They’re difficult if you’re playing from behind,” Bennett said of the Bulldogs, who made 25 of 26 foul shots to offset their 38.5 percent (13-27) shooting from the field.

Raivio, a junior point guard, scored 11 of his points in the final 5 minutes to take up some of the scoring slack created by Winston’s second-half defensive work on Morrison, who managed only eight points after intermission.

“He did a good job,” Morrison said of the Gaels’ 6-4 junior guard, who replaced teammate Brett Collins as Morrison’s shadow after intermission, “but I was missing some bunnies I normally make. I don’t know why everybody’s worried about my scoring here. We got the W. They did a good job, but I’m just trying to win games.”

Few agreed that Saint Mary’s second-half defensive change had an effect, but he added he was not satisfied with his team’s offensive execution.

“Winston did a good job, but Adam’s seen everything over the course of the year,” he explained. “We just did a bad job of moving the ball and moving our bodies, which played into what they were doing defensively.

“Not taking anything away from them … but we need to move our bodies, and we stood around a lot.”

When asked to address the electric atmosphere in Saint Mary’s gym, Morrison said, “We know that the fans here came to watch us. They’re not coming to watch their own Saint Mary’s team. Watch their other games, and there’s nobody in the stands.

“But when we come in here, we know they’re coming to watch us, and all we want is to get the W and get the hell out of here.”

GU used 17 points from Morrison and eight from Batista to build a 36-25 halftime lead but went stone cold from the field after intermission. The Bulldogs made only two of their first 17 second-half shots and during one 7½-minute stretch missed 12 consecutive tries.

A 3-pointer by Winston pulled Saint Mary’s to within 40-38 with 11:42 left, and the Gaels never let the Zags out of sight the rest of the way.

GU continues its Bay Area road trip on Monday when its faces Santa Clara in a 9 p.m. showdown that will serve as the WCC’s debut on ESPN2’s Big Monday telecast.

Gonzaga 68, Saint Mary’s 60

Percentages: FG .385, FT .962. 3-Point Goals: 3-10, .300 (Raivio 2-4, Morrison 1-4, Altidor-Cespedes 0-1, Pargo 0-1). Team Rebounds: 7. Blocked Shots: 5 (Mallon 2, Morrison, Batista, Gurganious). Turnovers: 9 (Batista 3, Mallon 2, Altidor-Cespedes, Gurganious, Knight, Pendergraft). Steals: 2 (Gurganious, Pendergraft). Technical Fouls: None.

Percentages: FG .339, FT .800. 3-Point Goals: 6-27, .222 (Kickert 2-5, Golden 2-7, Winston 1-5, O’Leary 1-7, Bond 0-1, Collins 0-2). Team Rebounds: 4. Blocked Shots: 3 (Kickert, Golden, Sholberg). Turnovers: 10 (Winston 3, Kickert 2, Collins, Bond, O’Leary, Simpson, Sholberg). Steals: 6 (Winston 2, Rhalimi, Kickert, Collins, Simpson). Technical Fouls: None.

Halftime–Gonzaga 36, Saint Mary’s 25. A–3,500.