Field Level Media
Aug 21, 2012
Zach Norvell Jr. scored a game-high 25 points Saturday night as No. 2 Gonzaga pulled away from BYU for a 102-68 West Coast Conference rout at Spokane, Wash.
With top-ranked Duke's loss to North Carolina on Wednesday night, Gonzaga (27-2, 14-0 WCC) had a chance to pass when the new polls come out Monday by taking care of its home games this week and didn't mess around with either game. Its focus was on display against the Cougars (18-12, 10-5), who had won in three of their last four trips to the McCarthey Athletic Center.
Rui Hachimura's 23 points and 10 rebounds, plus Josh Perkins' 21 points and seven assists, gave the Zags three players with at least 20 points. Brandon Clarke tacked on an 11-point, 10-rebound double-double.
Yoeli Childs and TJ Haws each scored 18 points to pace the Cougars, who made just 41.9 percent of their field goals and absorbed a second straight 30-plus point rout at Gonzaga's hands. BYU's frustration showed in the second half as the bench and coach Dave Rose each drew technicals from the officials.
Gonzaga went with an all-senior lineup in its last home game and wasted little time putting its stamp on matters. A Geno Crandall dunk gave the Zags a 13-5 advantage less than 4 1/2 minutes into the game, helping to set the tone.
BYU showed at times that it could match Gonzaga basket-for-basket but couldn't piece together enough stops to really make a game of it. Crandall's jumper at the 8:46 mark upped the margin to 31-19.
The Cougars were able to pull within 31-26 as McKay Cannon drilled a 3-pointer with 7:15 left, but Gonzaga pulled away from there. Perkins canned a 3-ball and Norvell capped an 18-point first half with a three-point play 29 seconds before intermission, sending the Zags to the locker room with a 51-38 cushion.
--Field Level Media