Recap and highlights: No. 21 Gonzaga dominates inside to beat Oklahoma soundly 83-68
After making short work of Kentucky in 2022, steamrolling Baylor last season and outclassing Oklahoma on Saturday, Gonzaga may have to wait awhile before another SEC or Big 12 opponent agrees to travel to Spokane for a nonconference game at the Arena.
Derrion Reid’s 3-pointer on the first possession was a cloudy memory by the time Tyon Grant-Foster soared into the air to catch Mario Saint-Supery’s alley-oop lob late in the first half, extending Gonzaga’s lead to 15 points in a game that didn’t get significantly more competitive in the final frame.
The Zags will try to spend the next eight weeks collecting marquee wins over high-major opponents, but they’re now 1-0 in that department, building a substantial lead in the first half before continuing to pull away in the second for an 83-68 victory in downtown Spokane.
The players, storylines and point margins have been different in each of Gonzaga’s last three nonconference victories at the Arena, but the sentiment after the final buzzer – and feeling about GU’s long-term potential – have been relatively similar.
On Nov. 20, 2022, the second-ranked Zags never trailed and led by as many as 19 points in an 88-72 victory over John Calipari’s fourth-ranked Kentucky. In another top-10 matchup at the Arena, sixth-ranked Gonzaga overwhelmed eighth-ranked Baylor from the opening tip, winning the 2024-25 season opener 101-63.
The game script wasn’t identical on Saturday, but featured many of the same trends. Gonzaga smothered Oklahoma on the defensive end, generated a hefty margin on the glass and played through Graham Ike and Braden Huff until the Sooners showed they had a way to contain the veteran frontcourt stars.
Oklahoma didn’t have the game plan or personnel to do so and Ike dominated with 19 points and 11 rebounds while Huff finished with 13 points and nine rebounds. Ike fouled out with 2 minutes, 52 seconds to play and with Gonzaga leading by 17 points.
By the time the final buzzer sounded, Gonzaga had a startling edge in paint points and notable advantages in bench points (38-8) and assists (20-5).
Reid’s 3-pointer opened the scoring and the Sooners established a 7-3 lead early on, not dissimilar from the way the opening minutes played out against Texas Southern Monday at McCarthey Athletic Center.
There were other parallels between the games.
Gonzaga, like it did the season opener, started to suffocate Oklahoma’s offense, forcing 10 turnovers before halftime. Another key development occurred at the 16-minute, 45-second mark, when Sooners big man Mohamed Wague picked up consecutive fouls on the same possession while guarding Ike. Wague went to the bench for roughly eight minutes and the Zags were leading by eight points by the time he returned.
In Grant-Foster’s second game since receiving an injunction that cleared him to play for the Zags, the Grand Canyon transfer provided a few of the game’s top highlights, punching in the alley-oop dunk in the first half before finishing a putback dunk on Huff’s missed 3-pointer in the second half.
After scoring 15 points in the opener, Grant-Foster scored 14 points on 6 of 11 shooting and had seven rebounds. Jalen Warley was another impact player off GU’s bench, scoring 13 points on 6 of 9 shooting while pulling down eight rebounds.
Senior guard Nijel Pack scored 20 points for the Sooners and backcourt mate Xzayvier Brown added 19.
Gonzaga’s rigorous nonconference schedule resumes on Tuesday with a visit from No. 23 Creighton (1-0). Tipoff at McCarthey Athletic Center is 7 p.m. and the game will air on ESPN’s main platform.
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First half
00:00 - GU 49, OU 30: Zags dominate on the glass and inside to build a 19-point lead.
3:26 - GU 41, OU 24: Gonzaga’s lead has ballooned to 17.
The Zags are dominating on the glass so far with the rebounding margin at 21-10.
Jalen Warley has nine points off the bench.
7:44 - GU 28, OU 20: Zags continue to dominate the interior with 22 points in the paint.
Graham Ike and Huff are leading the way for GU with six points each.
8:56 - GU 26, OU 18: Grant-Foster drills a 3-pointer, prompting a Sooners timeout.
Gonzaga is on a 7-0 and has held Oklahoma to no made field goals in over four minutes.
11:50 - GU 17, OU 14: Tyon Grant-Foster rises for the block on one end and finds space along the baseline for a dunk on the other.
14 of the Zags’ 17 points have come inside the paint.
13:28 - GU 15, OU 11: Gonzaga dominating inside the arc, shooting 78%.
15:26 - GU 9, OU 8: Zags use a 6-0 to take a narrow lead.
Braden Huff has four points and three rebounds early. Oklahoma’s Derrion Reid leads all scorers with five points.
Halftime
Gonzaga’s depth and size has been the difference in the first half.
The Zags are owning the rebounding margin 26-14 and have scored 38 points in the paint to Oklahoma’s 4.
The rebounding edge has allowed GU to attempt 15 more shots than the Sooners.
Grant-Foster and Ike are both up to 10 points, a game-high.
Second half
00:00 - GU 83, OU 68: Gonzaga moves to 2-0 after solid nonconference win against Oklahoma.
2:29 - GU 82, OU 66: Ike has fouled out with 19 points and 11 rebounds.
Oklahoma has played much better in the second half but has only made up 3 points on its halftime deficit.
5:23 - GU 70, OU 55: Oklahoma cut into Gonzaga’s lead with a 9-0 run.
Ike has picked up his fourth foul.
11:54 - GU 62, OU 39: Ike has a double-double with just under 12 minutes to play in the game. Ike has a game-high 15 points and 10 rebounds.
The Zags have stretched their lead to 23.
Oklahoma has tried to counter GU’s inside scoring with 3-pointers but are only shooting 19% behind the arc.
15:06 - GU 54, OU 34: Zags have started slow out of halftime, hitting only one of their first seven shots.
However, Oklahoma has been unable to cut into the big lead.
Starting five
Gonzaga: Braeden Smith, Emmanuel Innocenti, Graham Ike, Adam Miller, Braden Huff
Oklahoma: Xzayvier Brown, Mohamed Wague, Nijel Pack, Tae Davis, Derrion Reid
Pregame
No. 21 Gonzaga had little trouble dispatching Texas Southern in its season opener 98-43.
Now, the Zags welcome their first nonconference test against Oklahoma at the Arena.
The game is scheduled to tip off at 7:30 p.m. and air nationally on ESPN2
Both teams boast experienced rosters with Gonzaga’s average age just over 21 years old, only about two years younger than the Brooklyn Nets of the NBA.
Oklahoma rebuilt its roster through the transfer portal, which included the addition of veteran guard Nijel Pack. Pack transferred from Miami where he averaged 13.9 points in nine games played.
Tyon Grant-Foster, who had to battle the NCAA in court for eligibility this season, led the Zags in scoring in their first game with 15 points.
Game preview
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