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Zags Roll Past Pilots, 79-41
Jan. 28, 2008
SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) -- David Pendergraft and Josh Heytvelt combined for 27 first-half points Monday night and Gonzaga never trailed after the opening minutes of a 79-41 victory over Portland. Austin Daye's 19 points and 13 rebounds led the Bulldogs (16-5 overall, 5-0 West Coast Conference), who had the game in hand after Pendergraft scored 14 of his 15 points in the opening half. Sherrard Watson had 11 points for the Pilots (7-14, 1-4), who have lost nine in a row to Gonzaga. After Pendergraft and Heytvelt staked the Zags to a 39-22 halftime lead, Portland managed to close to within 39-29 on Robin Smeulders' jump hook with 16 minutes left. But Gonzaga responded, outscoring Portland 27-2 and holding the Pilots without a field goal over the next 8:05 to open a 66-31 lead. With Portland leading 7-5 early, Gonzaga used a 14-3 burst, capped by Micah Downs' 3-pointer with eight minutes left in the first half, to open a 19-10 lead. Gonzaga held the Pilots to 1-of-11 shooting and forced five turnovers in that stretch. Portland got as close as seven points twice, the last time at 25-18 with 5:22 left on a tough drive by Nik Raivio -- the younger brother of former Gonzaga standout Derek Raivio. Heytvelt scored all 13 of his points in the first half for Gonzaga, which has won seven of its last eight -- losing 81-73 at No. 1 Memphis last Saturday. Raivio, Portland's leading scorer at 12.4 points per game, was held to six points on 2-of-9 shooting. As a team, Portland managed just 14-of-53 from the floor. The Pilots have lost four of their last five.
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