Heytvelt boils Rice

Josh Heytvelt, Gonzaga University’s rapidly emerging sophomore star, gave Bulldog fans a few more reasons to ponder “what if” Tuesday night at the Arena.

The 6-foot-11 forward, who missed all but 14 games of his redshirt freshman season with a broken ankle, scored a career-high 25 points and muscled down 11 rebounds as the Zags dusted off Rice 88-50 in the opening round of the West Region of the Dick’s Sporting Goods NIT Season Tip-Off.

The win moved GU (2-0) into tonight’s 7:30 West Region final against Baylor (2-0), which edged Colorado State 87-82 in double overtime in Tuesday’s first game, dropping Rice (1-1) into this afternoon’s 4:30 consolation final against CSU (1-1).

The winner of tonight’s championship showdown will advance to the semifinals of the NIT Season Tip-Off in New York’s Madison Square Garden next Wednesday and will play in either the national title game or consolation final on Nov. 24.

A crowd of 6,841 was on hand to witness Heytvelt’s heroics and wonder, no doubt, what the former Clarkston High School standout might be capable of doing these days had he been healthy all of last winter.

Because Heytvelt, despite his still minimal experience at the NCAA Division I level, was – by far – the best player on the floor, totaling the big numbers despite sitting out the final 8 minutes.

“He really was a man,” Bulldogs coach Mark Few said. “And that was against some good athletes. I thought he did a good job of sticking with it and delivering, even in traffic.”

Few added he was more pleased in knowing that Heytvelt is just starting to scratch the surface when it comes to uncovering his considerable talents.

“He’s still developing as a player,” Few said, “and we’re still figuring out the best places to get him the ball.”

Heytvelt was hardly a one-man show against the Owls. Senior forward Sean Mallon finished with 14 points and backup front-liner Abdullahi Kuso added 10 as GU’s post players dominated on the low blocks.

Rice, which looked lost early on and stayed that way, got 18 points from Greg Killings and 13 from potential All-American Morris Almond.

“I thought we did a nice job, defensively, on him,” Few said of Almond, who was Conference USA’s top scorer last season with an average of 21.9 points per game. “He’s really a good player, and he’s tough to guard in a lot of different ways.”

The Bulldogs, after cruising to a 42-28 halftime lead, kept pressure on the Owls by putting together a decisive 16-4 run following intermission. Six different Zags scored during the run, which spanned 6 minutes and saw Rice make just 2 of 11 from the floor.

The Owls, who had no answer for GU’s aggressive defense, shot a paltry 29.5 percent (18 of 61) from the field and committed 14 turnovers. They also ran into all kinds of foul problems, trying to cope with the Bulldogs’ superior strength, quickness and talent.

The Zags made 22 of 34 free throws, while Rice finished just 10 of 13 from the line.

Heytvelt took control early, scoring the game’s first two points on a dunk, assisting on a basket by Mallon and then rejecting a shot on Rice’s ensuing possession.

He scored eight of GU’s first 15 points and was monster on the boards, finishing the opening period with 14 points and eight rebounds as the Zags forged a comfortable 42-28 lead.

Mallon scored nine first-half points for GU, which shot 46.9 percent (15 of 32) from the field and outrebounded the Owls 24-19. GU’s front line, including backups David Pendergraft and Kuso, accounted for 31 points and 13 rebounds in the opening 20 minutes the game.

Rice, which made only two of its first nine shots, finished the half shooting 35.5 percent from the floor. Killings led the Owls with eight points, followed my Almond with seven and Corey Pfleiger with six.

Gonzaga 88, Rice 50

Rice (1-1)—Britton 0-4 0-0 0, Killings 7-12 4-5 18, Hagan 1-9 0-0 3, Almond 4-15 5-5 13, Pflieger 2-3 0-0 6, Szalay 1-1 0-0 2, Hagen 0-2 0-0 0, Williams 2-6 0-1 5, Craciun 0-1 0-0 0, Packevicius 0-0 0-0 0, Foster 0-2 0-0 0, Belton 1-3 0-0 2, Ghoram 0-3 1-2 1. Totals 18-61 10-13 50.

Gonzaga (2-0)—Mallon 5-7 3-3 14, Heytvelt 10-19 5-7 25, Pargo 3-7 3-5 9, Altidor-Cespedes 3-5 0-2 9, Raivio 3-11 0-1 6, Sorenson 0-1 1-2 1, Mast 0-1 0-0 0, Bouldin 2-7 2-2 7, Pendergraft 3-4 0-0 7, Kuso 1-3 8-12 10, Foster 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 30-66 22-34 88.

Halftime—Gonzaga 42, Rice 28. 3-point goals—Rice 4-20 (Pflieger 2-3, Williams 1-4, Hagan 1-7, Foster 0-1, Ghoram 0-1, Almond 0-4), Gonzaga 6-17 (Altidor-Cespedes 3-4, Mallon 1-2, Bouldin 1-2, Pendergraft 1-2, Sorenson 0-1, Heytvelt 0-2, Raivio 0-4). Fouled out—Packevicius. Rebounds—Rice 33 (Killings 8), Gonzaga 52 (Heytvelt 11). Assists—Rice 7 (Hagan, Williams 2), Gonzaga 14 (Raivio, Bouldin 4). Total fouls—Rice 31, Gonzaga 19. A—6,841.