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Gonzaga regains shooting touch in 72-55 win
Jeff Hawkins is an award-winning sportswriter with more than four decades in the industry (print and digital media). A freelance writer/stay-at-home dad since 2008, Hawkins started his career with newspaper stints in Michigan, North Carolina, Florida, Upstate New York and Illinois, where he earned the 2004 APSE first-place award for column writing (under 40,000 circulation). As a beat writer, he covered NASCAR Winston Cup events at NHIS (1999-2003), the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks (2003-06) and the NFL's Carolina Panthers (2011-12). Hawkins penned four youth sports books, including a Michael Jordan biography. Hawkins' main hobbies include mountain bike riding, 5k trail runs at the Whitewater Center in Charlotte, N.C., and live music.
All posts by Jeff HawkinsUpdated15 Oct 2021
LOS ANGELES — Guards Gary Bell Jr. and Kevin Pangos combined for 33 points, including seven 3-pointers, to lead No. 3 Gonzaga to a 72-55 win over Loyola Marymount on Saturday in a West Coast Conference game at Gersten Pavilion.
Bell led Gonzaga (18-1, 7-0) with 17 points and Pangos had 16 points and six assists.
The Bulldogs had struggled from the floor and free throw line Thursday in a two-point victory at Pepperdine. Pangos, a senior, missed half of his foul shots and scored just nine points in that game, and Gonzaga was off target on 19 free throws.
“When Kevin is missing free throws, you know something is wrong,” Gonzaga coach Mark Few said of the senior guard, one of the nation’s best free throw shooters. “The moon is not orbiting properly or there is something wrong with the tides.
“I knew he’d get back to what he is and it was nice to see Gary get it going. He seemed to gain confidence each time the ball disappeared in the net.”
The Bulldogs, who came into the game ranked ninth in the nation at 82.6 points per game, looked more like themselves against Pepperdine.
They began the game on a 14-0 run and had a 20-point lead with about five minutes to go. Gonzaga had made 10 of 22 3-pointers, including 5 of 6 in the second half.
The Bulldogs came out with an extended and aggressive man defense that fueled its initial push, forcing Loyola Marymount ball-handlers away from the key and facilitating transition baskets.
“We had a long session yesterday watching film and focusing on defense,” Few said. “After what happened at Pepperdine, that was a main point of emphasis for us. I think they responded and played very well. We had kind of lost our way against Pepperdine. I think we did a better job today.”
LMU didn’t score its first points until guard Evan Payne’s jumper with 15:04 left in the first half. That was followed by consecutive 3-pointers by Gonzaga forward Kyle Wiltjer and guard Byron Wesley, which gave Gonzaga a 20-2 lead.
Wesley finished with 14 points, six rebounds, five assists and four assists. Wiltjer added 12 points and five assists.
Guard Ayodeji Egbeyemi led Loyola with 14 points, and forward Petr Herman and Payne each added 11.
“We only had three turnovers in the second half, so that helped us out a lot,” Loyola Marymount coach Mike Dunlap said. “We had open looks in the second half, but they just didn’t go down.”
NOTES: Gonzaga forward Domantas Sabonis had made his last 10 field goal attempts. The streak hit 11 with a made jumper midway through the first half and ended when he missed a layup later in the half. … Loyola Marymount, which had lost five straight until defeating Portland on Thursday, came into Saturday having lost its last 10 games to Gonzaga, dating back to 2010. … The Bulldogs’ 78-76 victory over Pepperdine on Thursday was coach Mark Few’s 200th West Coast Conference win. He’s the only coach in conference history to reach that mark.
