SPOKANE, Wash. — In a strong performance, the No. 19 Gonzaga Bulldogs defeated the Portland Pilots 81-50 during the Community Cancer Fund Classic held at Spokane Arena on Thursday night.
Nolan Hickman led the charge for Gonzaga with 13 points, while Ryan Nembhard contributed 10 points and nearly achieved a double-double with nine assists. Dusty Stromer added 12 points, Braden Huff also contributed with 10 points, and Michael Ajayi recorded an impressive 15 rebounds for the Bulldogs, who improved to an 11-4 record and maintained their perfect start of 2-0 in the West Coast Conference.
On the other hand, the Pilots struggled to find their rhythm, with redshirt freshman Vincent Delano being the sole player to score in double digits, finishing with 12 points. Delano managed to hit 6 of 16 attempts from the field, and as a team, Portland struggled tremendously, closing the game with a shooting percentage of 33.3%.
A standout player for Gonzaga was Ben Gregg, who made significant defensive contributions, securing four of the team’s ten steals throughout the match.
Key observations from the game include Gonzaga’s noticeable improvement in their three-point shooting, rebounding from a poor performance of just 2 for 15 in their previous league match against Pepperdine, to a solid 11 of 24 (45.8%) in this matchup.
The Pilots were unable to turn their fortunes around, as they have been consistently outrebounded by more than ten boards in all their conference games thus far.
A pivotal moment occurred after Gonzaga allowed the opening points of the game; they quickly retaliated with a 20-0 scoring spree, with both Huff and Nembhard contributing six points each during the stretch.
Another noteworthy statistic highlighted Gonzaga’s remarkable defensive effort, as they entered the game allowing opponents a mere 28% from beyond the arc. Portland struggled significantly, going just 1 for 14 in the first half, concluding the game with an unimpressive 4 of 25 (16%).
Looking ahead, the Pilots will return home to host Saint Mary’s this Saturday, while Gonzaga is set to visit Loyola Marymount the same day.
