No. 7 Gonzaga heats up after slow start, routs Loyola Marymount
Graham Ike recorded 16 points and seven rebounds to help No. 7 Gonzaga roll to an 82-47 victory over Loyola Marymount on Sunday night in West Coast Conference play at Spokane, Wash.
Mario Saint-Supery had 13 points and five assists and Jalen Warley added 12 points on 6-of-7 shooting and collected seven rebounds as the Bulldogs (16-1, 4-0 WCC) won their ninth straight game. Adam Miller had 11 points and three steals as Gonzaga defeated the Lions for the 35th time in the past 37 meetings.
Gonzaga used three lengthy runs totaling a 50-0 edge to run away from the Lions and win by 35 or more points for the seventh time this season. The Bulldogs shot 53.7% from the field, including 6 of 20 from behind the arc, and held a 46-33 rebounding advantage.
Rodney Brown Jr. scored 11 points for the Lions (10-7, 1-3), who continue to have troubles in Spokane. Loyola Marymount has won just once at Gonzaga since 1991 but that victory was memorable -- 68-67 on Jan. 19, 2023 to snap the Zags' 75-game home winning streak.
The Lions shot just 30.2% from the field and were 6 of 23 from 3-point range.
The Bulldogs already held a 17-point lead before delivering the knockout blow with 21 straight points.
Gonzaga led 46-29 before Braden Huff started the burst with a layup with 15:02 remaining. He also scored inside to make it a 36-point margin before Ike's layup capped it and made it 67-29.
Loyola Marymount scored its first points in a span of 8:05 on Jan Vide's basket with 7:56 remaining.
Davis Fogle later scored on a fast break as Gonzaga led by a game-high 42 with 4:09 left and cruised to the finish.
Gonzaga dug an early 10-point hole before using bursts of 15-0 and 14-0 to take a 33-19 halftime lead. Ike had 10 points and five rebounds in the half.
Rick Issanza's basket gave the Lions a 14-4 lead six-plus minutes into the game.
But Loyola Marymount missed its next 11 shots as the Bulldogs ripped off 15 consecutive points. Tyon Grant-Foster's dunk gave Gonzaga a 16-14 lead with 8:07 left in the half before the Bulldogs finished the run with three more points.
Brown's putback and Nakyel Shelton's 3-pointer allowed the Lions to knot the score at 19 before Gonzaga's second big first-half run.
Ike had eight points during that 14-0 surge to help the Bulldogs take the 14-point lead into the break.