Gonzaga remains unbeaten in WCC, downs USF

Published January 13, 2015

Kelly Olynyk had 26 points, Elias Harris scored 17 with 13 rebounds and the fifth-ranked Gonzaga Bulldogs left the War Memorial Gymnasium with their first win there in four years, pulling away for a 71-61 triumph over San Francisco.

Olynyk finished 13-of-17 shooting for the Bulldogs (25-2, 12-0 WCC), who ended a three-game road losing streak in this series.

Cole Dickerson paced the Dons (11-15, 4-9) with 15 points. Cody Doolin supplied 14 points in San Francisco's first home loss to Gonzaga since Feb. 14, 2009.

"They are a really good team and are physically stronger than us but our guys played really hard," USF head coach Rex Walters said. "Size does matter and physically they are a Final Four-caliber team."

The game looked to be rout as the Bulldogs raced out to a 19-4 lead with just over seven minutes played. It took a while, but San Francisco finally pulled even at 45-45 on a Dickerson 3-pointer with 10:36 remaining in the second half.

Gonzaga, clinging to a one-point lead after a free throw from Mark Tollefsen pulled the hosts within 53-52, went on a 10-0 game-sealing run. An Olynyk jumper capped the burst for a 63-52 advantage with 3:37 left.

Gonzaga head coach Mark Few said his club overcame a "very spirited" effort from San Francisco. "They played extremely hard," he added.

Game Notes

The Bulldogs have won 27 of the last 31 meetings and leads the series 46-22 ...Gonzaga was the highest-ranked team to visit the War Memorial Gymnasium since then-No. 3 Santa Clara on Feb. 15, 1969 ... The Dons entered play leading the WCC in three-point shooting at 40.7 percent. They finished 7-of-23 (30.4 percent) from beyond the arc.

URL

https://www.foxnews.com/sports/gonzaga-remains-unbeaten-in-wcc-downs-usf