Oregon @ Gonzaga preview

Seventh-ranked Gonzaga made it easy on itself in the first round of the Battle 4 Atlantis, but things will get much tougher when it attempts to snap a 15-game losing streak against No. 10 Oregon on Thursday in the semifinals at Paradise Island, Bahamas. Gonzaga shot 57.6 percent overall and drained 13-of-19 from 3-point range for a 94-69 win over Southern Miss on Wednesday before the Ducks came from 19 down in the second half to beat Seton Hall 71-69.

Junior forward Corey Kispert matched a career high with 28 points and connected on 7-of-8 from behind the 3-point arc to lead the Bulldogs in the first round after making just 2-of-17 from long range the previous three games. “It wasn’t easy and it wasn’t a lot of fun, man,” Kispert told reporters of his shooting slump. “It doesn’t feel good to see the ball not go in. … You’ve just got to trust the work you’ve put in, trust the hours you’ve done, not change a single thing and the ball’s going to eventually start falling for you.” Oregon trailed 49-30 early in the second half Wednesday before working its way back into it and scoring the final six points of the game - four by senior guard and leading scorer Payton Pritchard (18.8). The Ducks already boast a victory against a ranked team (No. 20 Memphis) and have not lost against Gonzaga since the 1929-30 season, but the teams have not played since Dec. 29, 1999.

TV: 4 p.m. ET, ESPN

ABOUT GONZAGA (7-0): The Bulldogs were just fine without senior forward Killian Tillie (14.0 points), who returned from knee surgery to play the previous two games but sat out the first-round contest. “I just think it’s going to be like that, see how it starts reacting to him playing,” Bulldogs coach Mark Few, an Oregon graduate, told reporters. “He played two games right before we left in like four days. I think the long plane ride might have led to it. It’s just a matter of getting all that swelling out of it and we’ll see what happens (Thursday).” Sophomore forward Filip Petrusev leads the team in scoring (16.3) after scoring 16 on Wednesday and Kispert (13.7) is third.

ABOUT OREGON (6-0): Pritchard averages 18.8 points along with a team-best 5.7 assists after scoring 16 in the first-round win and his air ball fell into the hands of Skakur Juiston for the winning basket with 14.4 seconds left. Senior guard Anthony Mathis is second on the team in scoring (13.5) despite being held to six on Wednesday and Juiston is the only other playing averaging in double figures scoring (10.2) after finishing with a dozen points and nine rebounds against Seton Hall. Junior guard Chris Duarte (9.3 points) scored 11 in the tournament opener and sophomore forward Francis Okoro leads the team in rebounding (6.6).

TIP-INS

1. Oregon freshman F C.J. Walker scored 12 points in the first-round win after totaling four in the first five games.

2. Gonzaga sophomore G Joel Ayayi filled the stat sheet with a season-high 21 points to go along with 12 rebounds and six assists Wednesday.

3. Pritchard has been a part of 87 wins in his career, tied with Dillon Brooks for fourth on the program’s all-time list.

PREDICTION: Gonzaga 80, Oregon 72