Pargo jumped into driver’s seat

PULLMAN – In the span of about 70 seconds, Gonzaga’s Jeremy Pargo had a slashing drive for a layup, a lob pass that led to Josh Heytvelt’s dunk, a 3-pointer from the corner and a steal and another lob pass that was dunked home by Austin Daye.

And Gonzaga’s lead went from one point to 10 just like that.

It was the beginning of a dominating stretch that saw the fourth-ranked Bulldogs outscore Washington State 36-5 over the first 14 minutes of the second half en route to an impressive 74-52 victory.

“I did that or the team?” Pargo responded, when asked about his contribution to the 15-0 run that launched GU’s huge second half. “I didn’t know that. I just wanted to get out there and pressure those guys as much as I could without turning them loose and getting easy looks at the basket.”

As good as Pargo was in that sequence, his steady play in the first half was just as important. The Bulldogs were out of sorts on offense, but ended up taking a 32-29 lead as Pargo had six points, six assists and just one turnover.

“Actually, he’s the one that kept us in that first half,” Gonzaga coach Mark Few said, “We were very stagnant and we could have very well been down in that first half. And then he did what’s he’s been doing all year, which is spread the wealth. He got Josh going, Austin going and Steven (Gray) going.”

Few said it was another example of Pargo’s maturity over the last year.

“It’s a fine line,” Few said. “We want him attacking, but he’s attacking so much more intelligently this year and he has such a better feel for how the game is going.”

Pargo finished with 11 points, 10 assists and just one turnover in 25 minutes. He has 53 assists and 11 turnovers in seven games.

Casto provides lift

True freshman forward DeAngelo Casto gave Washington State a noticeable spark in the first half. He made a jump hook over Heytvelt to tie the game at 13 and his two free throws put WSU on top 21-17.

“I just wanted to come out with energy,” Casto said.

Casto went on to finish with a career-high 10 points, four rebounds and two blocked shots.

“He was very active,” Cougars coach Tony Bennett said. “He had a little trouble guarding Heytvelt when they started screening for him but again, valuable experience for DeAngelo, Klay (Thompson) and all those guys. DeAngelo did a nice job and will be called upon to help us this year because he’s very lively.”

Sick bay

Gonzaga’s Matt Bouldin struggled in his two previous games against Washington State, but he had another concern Wednesday. He battled a nasty stomach flu that set in Tuesday night and sent him for medical attention a couple of hours before tipoff against the Cougars.

“I was feeling terrible,” said Bouldin, who had eight points and a team-high seven rebounds. “Probably two hours before the game I was at the (WSU) health center getting an IV. They pumped three (IV) bags in me earlier today.”

Bouldin was 0 of 11 from the floor and scored just two points against WSU the last two years. He connected on his first field goal with a jump shot that hiked Gonzaga’s lead to 52-33 with 13:13 remaining.

“He played really well for being in that condition,” forward Austin Daye said. “I don’t know if I could have got through that.”