No. 12 Zags assert themselves in second half to beat Santa Clara | Recap and highlights
SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Graham Ike’s previous outings against Santa Clara probably gave the Broncos a good idea of what to expect when 12th-ranked Gonzaga visited on Saturday.
The 17 points Ike scored in the first half were probably a solid indicator of where the Zags would be putting most of their chips when the second period started at the Leavey Center.
Santa Clara had a strong inkling of where the ball would go, but it didn’t mean the Broncos were any better-equipped to handle Ike, who’s played at an All-American level in recent weeks and once again managed to lift Gonzaga in the most important game of the regular season to this point.
Ike posted a 21-point, 15-rebound double-double and Gonzaga overcame shaky stretches in the first and second half to pull out a gutty 94-86 win at the Leavey Center.
Ike and everyone else involved seemed to understand the ramifications of Saturday’s major showdown between the top two teams in the West Coast Conference.
A second victory over Santa Clara pushed the Zags ahead of the Broncos in the league standings with four regular-season games remaining. Gonzaga, which beat Santa Clara 89-77 in the first meeting at McCarthey Athletic Center, will also have the tiebreaker on the Broncos should both finish the regular season with identical records.
The victory could also go a long way on Selection Sunday. The Zags entered Saturday’s game ranked No. 6 in the NCAA’s NET ratings, which are used to seed the NCAA Tournament field. Winning at Santa Clara, which is currently projected to make its first trip to the Big Dance since 1996, bumped Gonzaga’s record in “Quad 1” games to 6-1.
Ike’s production carried the Zags through the first half, but Tyon Grant-Foster supplied a spark in the second with the senior forward in foul trouble. Grant-Foster finished with 20 points, six rebounds, three assists, two steals and one block. The Grand Canyon transfer scored 13 of his 20 points in the second half.
Gonzaga trailed early in the first half and found itself in a five-point hole midway through the second after Santa Clara’s Sash Gavalyugov buried a long 3-pointer.
Ike and friends fueled the ensuing Gonzaga flurry, which opened with a layup from the senior forward to trim the deficit to three points. Freshman Davis Fogle followed with a crafty up-and-under layup to make it a one-point game and stole the ensuing inbound pass, laying the ball in to give the Zags a lead. A hasty 9-0 run culminated with a layup from Emmanuel Innocenti to make it 63-60.
Gonzaga didn’t trail the rest of the game, but the visitors still needed timely shot making down the stretch. Elijah Mahi’s layup trimmed the Santa Clara deficit to four points with just under seven minutes remaining, but Adam Miller calmly drilled a 3-pointer at the other end to restore a seven-point lead.
Miller and Grant-Foster both made late free throws to help the Zags maintain their cushion and the senior transfers connected on an alley oop with 53 seconds remaining to all but slam the door on a Santa Clara comeback.
Miller had 14 of his 21 points in the second half, making 7 of 8 shots from the field. Emmanuel Innocenti finished with another 16 points for the Zags, adding six rebounds and two assists.
Ike missed his first his first two shot attempts during a sluggish start to the first half for Gonzaga. The visitors trailed by as many as eight points at the 11-minute, 11-second mark, but a quick four-point scoring spurt from Tyon Grant-Foster made it a two-possession game and eventually took the lead on Ike’s layup with under seven minutes to play.
The Zags scored nine of the final 11 points to close the first half and took a five-point lead into the break after Mario Saint-Supery’s putback at the halftime buzzer.
Gonzaga made just 3 of 18 shots from the 3-point line, but had an overwhelming 66-42 advantage in points in the paint. The Zags also outrebounded the Broncos 41-32 and were 19 of 29 fom the free throw line.
Santa Clara’s Christiam Hammond finished with a team-high 16 points on 7 of 14 shooting. Mahi had 15 on 6 of 15 shooting and standout freshman forward Allen Graves had 12 on 2 of 7 shooting before fouling out.
Gonzaga (25-2, 13-1) resumes WCC play Wednesday when it travels to play San Francisco (14-13, 6-8) at the Chase Center (7:30 p.m., ESPN2). Playing without Ike, the Zags clipped the Dons 68-66 on Jan. 24 in Spokane.
First half
15:49 - SC 9, GU 4: Santa Clara starts hot from the field, hitting three of its last three shots.
13:02 - SC 11, GU 7: Santa Clara nursing an early lead. Graham Ike has four points for the Zags.
11:31 - SC 17, GU 9: The Broncos push their lead to eight points after a 6-0 run.
8:16 - GU 24, SC 24: Gonzaga claws back to tie the game behind 11 points from Ike.
The Zags are crashing the offensive glass with eight second-chance points.
2:06 - GU 39, SC 36: Gonzaga has upped its efficiency in the first half, shooting an even 50%.
Ike has a game-high 17 points and eight rebounds.
Halftime
Gonzaga works its way back from an early deficit to lead 44-39 at halftime.
The Zags found their rhythm on offense, led by 17 points from Ike.
Once again, GU has dominated the interior. The Zags have 34 points in the paint and 10 second-chance points off seven offensive rebounds.
Emmanuel Innocenti and Tyon Grant-Foster have complemented Ike with nine and seven points, respectively.
Second half
15:54 - GU 49, SC 49: Santa Clara has outscored Gonzaga 10-5 to start the second half, pulling into a tie.
12:24 - SC 60, GU 55: Santa Clara makes consecutive 3-pointers to regain the lead.
7:43 - GU 68, SC 64: Gonzaga has inched ahead after a stretch of making six of its last seven field goal attempts.
Ike, now up to 21 points, has eclipsed the 20-point threshold for the seventh straight game.
3:25 - GU 79, SC 72: Gonzaga continues to punish Santa Clara inside with 58 points in the paint. The Zags are shooting nearly 60% from the field in the second half.
0:44 - GU 87, SC 79: Gonzaga closing in on a crucial West Coast Conference win. Grant-Foster is up to 20 points after a thunderous alley-oop from Adam Miller.
Starting 5s
Gonzaga: Braeden Smith, Adam Miller, Emmanuel Innocenti, Jalen Warley, Graham Ike.
Santa Clara: Brenton Knapper, Christian Hammond, Elijah Mahi, Jake Ensminger, Bukky Oboye.
Pregame
No. 12 Gonzaga (24-2, 12-1) and Santa Clara collide at the Leavey Center with first place in the West Coast Conference up for grabs.
The Broncos (22-5, 13-1) lost by 12 points in Spokane on Jan. 8. However, injured GU forward Braden Huff supplied 12 points in that win.
NBA hopeful Allen Graves will try to give Santa Clara the edge tonight and write a new chapter in the Zags-Broncos rivalry throughout their time in the West Coast Conference.
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