No. 17 Zags pull away to beat San Francisco in WCC semis

Field Level Media|published: Tue 12th March, 02:45 2024

March 11, 2024; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Gonzaga Bulldogs forward Graham Ike (13) shoots the basketball against San Francisco Dons center Volodymyr Markovetskyy (33) during the first half in the semifinals of the WCC Basketball Championship at Orleans Arena. credits: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Nolan Hickman recorded 20 points and six assists to help No. 17 Gonzaga post an 89-77 victory over San Francisco on Monday night in Las Vegas to reach the championship game of the West Coast Conference tournament.

Ben Gregg added 17 points and 11 rebounds and sparked the second-seeded Bulldogs (25-6) in the second half with four 3-pointers over the first 6 1/2 minutes.

Gonzaga will face top-seeded Saint Mary's in Tuesday night's WCC title game. The Bulldogs and No. 21 Gaels split their two regular-season meetings.

Anton Watson had 17 points and seven rebounds and Ryan Nembhard added 16 points and 12 assists for Gonzaga, which has won 25 games for the 17th consecutive season. Graham Ike added 10 points for the Bulldogs.

Malik Thomas scored 22 points and Marcus Williams added 17 points and six assists for third-seeded San Francisco (23-10). Jonathan Mogbo had 10 points and nine rebounds and Robby Beasley also scored 10 for the Dons.

The Bulldogs defeated San Francisco for the 30th consecutive time, including three meetings this season.

Gonzaga was a solid 11 of 20 from 3-point range and shot 50.8 percent overall. The Bulldogs committed just three turnovers.

Gregg's sharpshooting helped Gonzaga turn a one-point halftime lead into a 63-47 advantage on Gregg's fourth 3-pointer in his barrage.

The Bulldogs were leading by 10 when Gregg hit the last two of his shooting spree in a span of 22 seconds. That gave Gonzaga a 16-point lead with 13:35 left and the Zags wildly celebrated the last one as the Dons called timeout.

Hickman's steal and basket gave Gonzaga a 68-49 advantage with 11:44 left.

San Francisco closed within 11 but Ike's thunderous dunk with 1:16 remaining helped the Bulldogs close it out.

San Francisco shot 46 percent from the field, including 11 of 31 from 3-point range.

The Dons put up a good fight in the first half and led by as many as eight before Gonzaga rallied for a 38-37 halftime edge.

Ryan Beasley drained a 3-pointer to cap a 13-4 burst that saw San Francisco take a 35-27 lead with 3:17 left in the half.

Hickman and Dusty Stromer made treys during an 11-0 surge as the Bulldogs took a 38-35 lead. San Francisco's Mogbo barely got a short bank shot off before the buzzer, making it a one-point deficit.

—Field Level Media