Gonzaga stays perfect
Jalen Suggs hit two late 3-pointers and scored 23 points, helping top-ranked Gonzaga survive its biggest test of an undefeated season to beat Brigham Young 88-78 in the West Coast Conference Tournament title game on Tuesday night.
The Bulldogs (26-0) had been unstoppable all season, winning all but one of their games by double digits as they advanced to the WCC title game for the 24th straight year.
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The Cougars (20-6) made the lopsided losses list twice, but exposed Gonzaga’s lone weakness in the first half at Orleans Arena: its defense.
BYU shot confidently, using an early 11-0 run to build a 12-point halftime lead.
The Zags responded to their biggest halftime deficit in three years by locking down defensively and getting back to their efficient ways on offense.
Suggs took charge down the stretch, hitting consecutive 3-pointers to put Gonzaga up by nine with 1:28 left. Corey Kispert scored 14 of his 17 points in the second half.
Gonzaga has won a schoolrecord 30 straight games over two seasons and will be the first team since Kentucky in 2015 and 16th overall to enter the NCAA Tournament undefeated. The Zags won their eighth WCC title in nine years and 17th under coach Mark Few.
Trevin Knell led BYU with 20 points.
The Cougars were the last team to beat Gonzaga, 91-78 on Feb. 22, 2020.
Gonzaga won the first meeting this season by 17 points, but the second was 8271 — one of the closest games these Zags have played.
BYU’s best chance to win the third go-round was to outshoot the Zags.
The Cougars did just that to start the game, hitting 10 of their first 16 shots to take a 2619 lead. BYU continued to go right at the Zags, hitting 9 of 13 from beyond the arc to lead 53-41 at halftime. Knell had 15 points and was 4 of 5 from 3.
Gonzaga looked like more the the nation’s No. 1 team to start the second half, getting out to BYU’s shooters and putting the ball in Kispert’s hands.
The preseason Associated Press All-American shot 1 of 6 in the first half, but made three 3s in the opening three minutes to pull Gonzaga with 55-52.
BYU went back up nine behind its defense, but the Zags answered with a 12-0 run to go up 71-68.
Suggs hit a 3-pointer with 2:20 left and another on Gonzaga’s next possession to make it 82-73.
Mount St. Mary’s 73, Bryant 68 — Damian Chong Qui scored 21 points and Malik Jefferson scored 10 with 15 rebounds and Mount St. Mary’s stunned Bryant in the Northeast Conference tournament championship game and clinched an automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament.
It’s Mount St. Mary’s (12-10) sixth trip to the NCAA Tournament. Bryant (15-6), which entered Tuesday’s game undefeated at home this season, has yet to make an appearance in the big dance.
The Mount was NEC’s No. 4 seed and Bryant was second seeded.
Chong Qui scored nine straight points, but despite that, Bryant cut into the Mountaineers lead and drew to within 54-53 on Charles Pride’s layup with 7:20 left. Mount St. Mary’s proceeded to go on an 11-2 run for a 10point advantage with 3:27 left. Pride later buried consecutive 3-pointers, and his layup with 18 seconds left reduced Bryant’s deficit to 70-68. But Nana Opoku, a 45% foul shooter on the season, calmly sank a pair and sealed the Bulldog’s fate.
Opoku scored 18 points and Mezie Offurum 16 for the Mountaineers.
Pride scored a career-high 33 points and finished a point away from scoring half of Bryant’s 68 points. He made 8-of-12 3s but the rest of the team went 0 for 13 from beyond the arc. Peter Kiss scored 12 for Bryant.
Cleveland St. 80, Oakland 69 —
Torrey Patton had 23 points and 10 rebounds, Tre Gomillion added 16 points and 13 rebounds, and topseeded Cleveland State beat Oakland in the Horizon League championship for the program’s third NCAA Tournament berth.
Cleveland State (19-7) snapped a string of four straight 20-loss seasons this year to win its first conference title since 2009 — when it upset No. 4 seed Wake Forest in the NCAAs. The Vikings also reached the Sweet Sixteen as a 14-seed in 1986, losing 71-70 to AllAmerica center David Robinson and Navy.
D’Moi Hodge added 15 points, eight rebounds and three blocks for Cleveland State. Patton, who entered averaging 22 points, 13 rebounds and 4.5 assists in the tournament, was 9 of 16 from the field and also had four assists.
Iona 72, Quinnipiac 48 — Isaiah Ross had 15 points as ninth-seeded Iona easily defeated eighth-seeded Quinnipiac in the first round of the Metro Atlantic Conference Tourney.
Asante Gist had 12 points for Iona (9-5), which faces regular-season champion Siena in the quarterfinals on Wednesday. Dwayne Koroma added 10 points. Nelly Junior Joseph had nine rebounds. Berrick JeanLouis tied a career high with 11 rebounds plus 7 points.
Savion Lewis had eight assists for the Bobcats (9-13), who had no player score more than seven points and shot 28%.
Fairfield 59, Manhattan 58 — Jesus Cruz had 16 points off the bench to lead Fairfield to an overtime win over Manhattan in a first-round game of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference tournament.
Jake Wojcik had 15 points for Fairfield (8-16) and Taj Benning collared eight rebounds.