Recap and highlights: No. 2 Gonzaga pummels Pacific in the Kennel 89-51
The Kennel was rocking, Jalen Suggs made his return to Spokane and Gonzaga dominated another West Coast Conference foe for its 13th straight win on Thursday.
The No. 2 Zags (20-2, 9-0 WCC) cruised to a 89-51 victory over Pacific (7-17, 2-7), shooting 51.5% from the field and 39.3% on 3-pointers.
Rasir Bolton led with 20 points, while Julian Strawther (15), Chet Holmgren (14) and Drew Timme (13) all reached double figures.
The Tigers couldn’t buy a basket, shooting 31.3% from the field and were 3-for-21 on 3-pointers. It somehow got worse for Pacific in the second half, shooting 24.1% from the field, as Gonzaga coasted to the finish line.
Gonzaga will wait to host No. 22 Saint Mary’s on Saturday at 7 p.m. on ESPN2 for the first ranked WCC game of the year, though the Gaels lost to Santa Clara on Tuesday.
First half
17:14 - GU 12, PU 4: Pacific takes an early timeout as the Zags start strong, going on a 7-0 run and making 5 of its first 7 field goal attempts.
Timme and Bolton lead with five points apiece, while Strawther adds two.
15:44 - GU 17, PU 6: Gonzaga continues to build its lead at the U16 media timeout, on a 12-2 run over the previous 2 1/2 minutes.
10:40 - GU 26, PU 10: Gonzaga shooting 61.1% to start the game and 3 of 6 on 3-pointers, while Pacific shooting 35.7%. Zags out-rebounding the Tigers 12-5, and Pacific is yet to record an assist.
Strawther leads Gonzaga with seven points.
6:58 - GU 30, PU 17: Pacific cuts into Gonzaga’s lead by three points at the U8 media timeout. Anderson leads the Tigers, who are yet to make a 3-pointer in five attempts and are shooting 40% from the field.
3:16 - GU 39, PU 22: Gonzaga goes into the U4 media timeout with a highlight dunk from Strawther, who is up to nine points in the game, sharing a team-high with Timme.
Holmgren is 3 of 3 from the field to add seven points and three rebounds.
Halftime
It wasn’t Gonzaga’s best half of the season, but the Bulldogs easily built a 18-point lead, shooting 55.9% from the field and 5 of 14 on 3-pointers.
Meanwhile, they limited Pacific to 37.1% shooting and just 1-for-13 on 3s. The Zags also out-rebounded the Tigers 23-15 and had six more assists.
Chet Holmgren scored a team-high 12 points with five rebounds, continuing an as impressive stretch of games as anyone in the country.
Drew Timme (11 points), Julian Strawther (9) and Rasir Bolton (7) all add to the total, as seven Zags find the scoresheet.
Impact performance
Second half
15:29 - GU 56, PU 31: Gonzaga opens the second half on a 10-3 run at the U16 media timeout.
Holmgren (14 points), Strawther (12), Timme (11) and Bolton (10) all in double figures.
11:49 - GU 58, PU 34: The Zags have cooled off making 1 of its last 7 attempts and on a 2:22 minute scoring drought entering the U12 media timeout.
Despite that, Pacific doesn’t pose a threat, missing all 10 of its field goal attempts in the second half and scoring all six of its second half points on free throws.
3:28 - GU 81, PU 49: Gonzaga well on its way another WCC win.
Bolton leads all scorers with 20 points, while four Zags are in double figures and Timme has a double-double with 13 points, 10 rebounds.
Pregame
Gonzaga is riding a 12-game win streak into its game against Pacific, where it hasn’t just beaten its opponents, it’s dominated them.
The No. 2 Bulldogs (19-2, 8-0 West Coast) host the Tigers (7-16, 2-6) at 6 p.m. on CBS Sports, in a classic look-ahead spot with No. 22 Saint Mary’s coming to Spokane on Saturday.
Pacific has won just two games since mid-December, but aren’t a stranger to pulling off an upset, having knocked off BYU on Jan. 29 and taking No. 21 USC to the brink on Tuesday in a 74-68 loss.
Still, the 32-point favorite Zags will be expected to coast to victory. Convincing wins tonight and on Saturday would make the case for Gonzaga to return to the No. 1 spot in the AP Top 25 Poll, after top-ranked Auburn lost to Arkansas 80-76 on Tuesday.
Series history
Gonzaga has a 19-1 all-time record against Pacific, beating them 17-straight times since 2012.
The Tigers’ lone win came on Dec. 23, 1976 by a score of 70-60 at Pacific.
Gonzaga won the first meeting last year 95-49 and the second 76-58.
Game preview
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