Bulldogs women on a roll
It took the Gonzaga women’s basketball team most of the first half Friday night to take control of their game against Marquette, but once they did it was clear why the Bulldogs are beginning to find themselves on the national radar.
Receiving one or more votes in the latest Associated Press and USA Today polls, the Bulldogs used a balanced scoring attack and an 11-point halftime lead to roll past the visiting Golden Eagles of the Big East Conference 77-64 in a non-conference game at the McCarthey Athletic Center.
The Bulldogs, who shot 47.5 percent from the field, were led by sophomore Heather Bowman’s 17 points and eight rebounds.
Five GU players finished with double-digit scoring. Janelle Bekkering added 15 points and Courtney Vandersloot, Maria Hassett and Rachel Kane each scored 10.
“Team effort for sure,” said Bowman, a Lewis and Clark graduate. “That’s what we’ve been doing all season long and it’s been working for us. They take inside way, we go outside, and we’ve got a lot of players that can score.”
The Bulldogs’ 4-0 start is the second in program history, and first under head coach Kelly Graves. All four wins have come against teams that made it to the postseason last year – two in the NCAA tournament and two in the NIT.
“If you would have told me with the four teams that we had here to start the season that we would have won by double figures in all four, I wouldn’t have necessarily thought that would happen,” said Graves. “We’ve beaten four very good teams.”
After 10 lead changes in the first half, Bekkering and Vandersloot led the Bulldogs on a 7-0 run as Gonzaga took a 37-30 lead and never looked back.
They forced 30 Marquette turnovers over 40 minutes, giving up 23 possessions of their own.
“We’re trying to run a fast-paced game, so we’re going to have some turnovers – it’s the kind of dumb turnovers we have to eliminate,” said Graves.
Svetlana Kovalenko finished with a double-double, 14 points and 10 rebounds, to lead Marquette. Angel Robinson added 10 points for the Golden Eagles, who were playing without leading scorer Krital Ellis, out with a knee injury.
In Marquette’s (2-2) first two games, Ellis averaged 21.5 points and four assists.
“It’s a shame,” said Graves. “We wanted to play against her. That only helps us and makes us better. We wanted the fans to see a player like her.”
The Bulldogs kick off a month-long road swing at Portland State on Sunday against the Vikings (4-0) from the Big Sky Conference.
Gonzaga returns home on Dec. 19 to take on Purdue.