The second half was completely different, with the teams trading athletic plays and big shots instead of clanks. It found a rhythm for a short stint to go up seven, and then struggled again to finish the first half at 9 of 29 from the field. Gonzaga struggled early on against Arizona's all-over pressure. "It was our great defense that tied the game." "We had a dismal performance in the first half on offense," Miller said. Wiltjer kicked off the game with an air ball on an open jumper, a prelude for what was a physical, don't-give-an-inch first half.Īrizona hit 9 of 27 shots in the first half, pulling even at 27-all after Ashley scored five quick points and found Elliott Pitts for a kick-out 3-pointer. Gonzaga, which won the NIT Season Tip-Off, has gotten to this point behind one of the nation's most efficient offenses. "They were able to make a shot and that's what it came down to."Īrizona rolled Gonzaga in the round of 32 in last season's NCAA tournament, and the rematch was a marquee matchup of deep, talented teams butting heads in one of college basketball's best venues.Īrizona's forte has been defense, holding the Wildcats together when their offense has struggled. "We missed shots the last couple possessions and that hurt us," Gonzaga coach Mark Few said.
Kevin Pangos had six assists, but was held to eight points on 3-of-10 shooting. Kyle Wiltjer led the Bulldogs with 15 points. Wesley had a chance to tie the game after being fouled on a 3-pointer, but was well short on his first attempt and clanged away the other two. Gonzaga (7-1) shot well inside, but went 4 for 17 from 3-point range and had two key turnovers late in overtime.
"Our defense was very, very good and that's why we won," coach Sean Miller said. McConnell, limited in the first half by foul trouble, was assertive in the extra period, leading the Wildcats to their 26th straight home win.īrandon Ashley had 14 points for Arizona, which made 14 of 24 shots after halftime to win its 35th straight regular-season non-conference game. "It was a mindset of kind of taking personally: What about Arizona, why not us?" said McConnell, who scored all of Arizona's points in overtime.Īrizona (8-0) rallied from a poor-shooting first half and a couple of deficits in the second half.
9 Gonzaga after Byron Wesley air-balled the first of three missed free throws with 3.3 seconds left on Saturday. 3 Arizona held on for a 66-63 victory over No. McConnell scored six of his 12 points in overtime, and No.
The Wildcats took it as a challenge, stood toe-to-toe with the Zags and pulled out a big nonconference win. Arizona heard all week about Gonzaga, how the Bulldogs were a big and talented team that could end the Wildcats' long home winning streak.
0 kommentar(er)
