Gonzaga extends Sweet 16 streak

Zags break open a close game in 15-0 2nd-half run against Kansas

Gonzaga played a nearly perfect second half, busting open a back-and-forth game with a 15-0 run Saturday to pull away from Kansas for an 89-68 win and extend its nation-best streak of trips to the Sweet 16 to nine.

Anton Watson shot 8 for 11 for 21 points on an afternoon when basically everyone in a navy jersey was a star, especially after halftime in Salt Lake City.

The fifth-seeded Zags (277) made their first five 3pointers of the second half, not missing from long range until 1:30 remained and the game had long entered extended garbage time.

Mark Few’s team will make its regular trip to the second weekend to play the winner of Sunday’s game between Purdue and Utah State.

Nolan Hickman finished with 17 points for the Zags, and big man Graham Ike had 15 points and nine rebounds, going toe to toe with KU’s Hunter Dickinson, who finished with a quiet 15 points. Making all the Bulldogs look good was Ryan Nembhard, who blew off a rough shooting night (1 for 6) and finished with 12 assists.

While Gonzaga was cruising, parts of this looked painfully familiar to fans of the fourth-seeded Jayhawks (2311), who have struggled with depth, shooting, consistency and injuries — leading scorer Kevin McCullar Jr. (knee) was out for the tournament. During Gonzaga’s 15-0 run, the Jayhawks missed 10 consecutive shots and never got within single digits again.

Midwest Region

Arizona 78, Dayton 68:

Caleb Love scored 19 points and second-seeded Arizona reached the Sweet 16 for the second time in three seasons, beating No. 7 seed Dayton in the second round of the NCAA tournament in Salt Lake City.

The Wildcats (27-8), who also reached a regional semifinal in 2022 in coach Tommy Lloyd’s first season, will face either the West Region’s No. 6 seed, Clemson, or third-seeded Baylor in Los Angeles on Thursday.

DaRon Holmes II had 23 points and 11 rebounds for the Flyers (25-8). Tennessee 62, Texas 58:

Dalton Knecht scored 18 points and made four free throws in the final 8.8 seconds as second-seeded Tennessee (26-8) topped seventhTexas (21-13) in Charlotte, N.C., to advance to the Sweet 16 for the second consecutive year.

West Region

North Carolina 85, Michigan State 69: RJ Davis scored 20 points to help North Carolina beat Michigan State in Charlotte, N.C., pushing the Tar Heels to the Sweet 16 while keeping them unbeaten in March Madness against Spartans Hall of Fame coach Tom Izzo. No. 1 seed UNC (29-7) ran off 17 unanswered points during a 23-3 run in the last eight minutes of the first half to erase a 12-point deficit. Tyson Walker scored 24 points for the ninth-seeded Spartans (20-15).

East Region

Iowa State 67, Washington State 56: Tamin Lipsey had 15 points for secondseeded Iowa State (29-7) in Omaha, Neb., as the Cyclones beat seventh-seeded Washington State (25-10).