College Basketball

No. 19 Gonzaga rolls to 81-50 victory over Portland

No. 19 Gonzaga rolls to 81-50 victory over Portland The Gonzaga bench celebrates a 3-point basket by Emmanuel Innocenti during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against Portland, Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025, in Spokane, Wash. (AP Photo/Young Kwak) (Young Kwak/AP)

SPOKANE, Wash. — (AP) — Nolan Hickman had 13 points and No. 19 Gonzaga cruised to an 81-50 victory over Portland on Thursday night in the Community Cancer Fund Classic at Spokane Arena.

Ryan Nembhard added 10 points and nine assists for the Bulldogs (11-4, 2-0 West Coast Conference). Dusty Stromer scored 12, Braden Huff had 10 points and Michael Ajayi pulled down 15 rebounds.

Redshirt freshman Vincent Delano was the only player in double figures for the Pilots (5-11, 0-3) with 12 points. Delano shot 6 for 16 from the field and Portland was held to 33.3% overall.

Ben Gregg had four of Gonzaga’s 10 steals.

Takeaways

Gonzaga: After shooting 2 for 15 from 3-point range in their conference opener against Pepperdine, the Zags went 11 of 24 (45.8%) in this one.

Portland: The Pilots have been outrebounded by double digits in all three league games.

Key moment

After giving up the opening score, Gonzaga went on a 20-0 run. Huff and Nembhard had six points apiece during the spurt.

Key stat

Coming into the game, Gonzaga had held opponents to 28% from behind the 3-point line. Portland went 1 for 14 in the first half and finished 4 of 25 (16%).

Up next

Portland returns home to face Saint Mary’s on Saturday.

Gonzaga visits Loyola Marymount on Saturday.

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