SAN DIEGO -- The sellout crowd full of Gonzaga fans got what it wanted as the Zags pulled off a hard-fought 52-48 win over Santa Clara to advance to Monday's WCC championship game.

The game was in doubt in the :12 mark when Santa Clara's Brody Angley launched an ill-advised fall-away 3-pointer to try to tie the game at 51. Abdullahi Kuso got the rebound for Gonzaga and picked up John Brant's fifth foul to go to the line. He missed the first, but hit the second to give the Zags a four-point lead and put the game out of reach for the Broncos.

The Zags advance to faced the winner of tonight's matchup between top-seeded Saint Mary's and 3rd-seeded San Diego, which is playing on its home court. Santa Clara goes home to regroup for next season.

Continue reading "WCC: Zags Hold On, Advance to Championship" »

Posted by Jason Owens at 11:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

SAN DIEGO -- With about five minutes remaining, Gonzaga led Santa Clara 49-44. Santa Clara center John Bryant returned to the game with four fouls and has changed the complexion on both ends of the court. Gonzaga's struggling to get open baskets and Santa Clara is working the ball inside to cut the deficit to 49-48 with 2:00 remaining. This one's going down to the wire.

Posted by Jason Owens at 11:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

SAN DIEGO -- It didn't take John Bryant long to pick up his fourth foul after spending four minutes on the bench when he got his third. Santa Clara's All-WCC center returned to the game returned to the game with his Broncos leading 37-36 at the 10:15 mark of the second half, but went right back to the pine about two minutes later when he picked up his fourth.

But Santa Clara has been playing well without him and trails 43-42 with 7:26 remaining thanks to a Mitch Henke 3-pointer. So far, they've hit 6-of-12 from long range. They'll need to keep it up; I doubt we'll see Bryant again until the game is under four minutes. They'll also need to figure out a way to slow center Josh Heytvelt, who leads Gonzaga with 13 points.

Posted by Jason Owens at 11:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

SAN DIEGO -- Santa Clara center John Bryant scored the first four points of the second half but also picked up a couple of quick fouls for a total of three with about 14 minutes left in regulation. Now he's riding the pine, but don't expect him to be there long as the Broncos need their All-WCC center down the stretch to beat the Zags.

With 13:27, the Broncos have kept the score low and hold a 35-34 lead with 13:27 left in the game. They've done it by pressuring the ball and forcing 13 turnovers, leading to 11 Santa Clara points.

Posted by Jason Owens at 10:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

SAN DIEGO -- If the Zags expected to coast tonight, they were wrong. After facing an early 11-3 deficit, Gonzaga has battled back to take a 28-25 halftime lead with a strong inside-out game that's led to five 3-pointers and nine point inside from center Josh Heytvelt off the bench.

Santa Clara has countered with strong perimeter play of its own, led by Calvin Johnson's nine points on 3-of-4 shooting from behind the arc. Gonzaga has limited the effectiveness of center John Bryant, who has six points and three rebounds at the half and has missed 6-of-9 field goal attempts. The All-WCC center averages 18.2 points and 9.7 rebounds per game; if the Broncos want to pull off this upset, they'll need better production from Bryant in the second half.

Posted by Jason Owens at 10:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

SAN DIEGO -- After a slow start, Gonzaga is settling into its game, but Santa Clara is not backing down and still maintains a 19-18 lead with 6:48 left in the first half. Even though the Gonzaga campus if the farthest from San Diego of any of the WCC teams, this is essentially a home game for the Zags, with their red-clad crowd cheering along with the cheerleaders to drown out the Santa Clara faithful.

Instead of going into All-WCC center John Bryant, the Broncos have been attacking the Bulldogs from the perimeter, catching them off guard. They've hit 3-of-6 3-pointers so far, which should open the inside up for Bryant to do his work as the game continues. The Zags have countered with three 3-pointers of their own while owning the glass, 12-8 in the early going. They've got their crowd behind them; now they need to figure out out to slow the Broncos down.

Posted by Jason Owens at 09:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

SAN DIEGO -- After two days of sub-.500 teams and sparse if not non-existent fan support, we officially have a conference tournament on our hands. It's the WCC semifinals, featuring two nationally prominent teams in No. 22 Gonzaga and top-seeded Saint Mary's, which has spent plenty of time in the top 25 this season.

No. 2 seed Gonzaga tips the night off against 4th-seeded Santa Clara and the Zags came fully equipped with a jam-packed student section and rowdy crowd. Few expect the Broncos to give Gonzaga a game, but they'll have their hands full with Santa Clara center John Bryant, who schooled USF last night to the tune of 25 points and 17 rebounds. The Zags have an at-large bid wrapped up while Santa Clara, with a 15-15 record has its eyes on the WCC automatic bid. The atmosphere is electric. Let's see if the game is too.

Posted by Jason Owens at 09:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

SAN DIEGO -- You'd think Santa Clara was UCLA and the Jenny Craig Pavilion was Pauley Pavilion. Playing with a one-point deficit and time winding down, Santa Clara went inside to star big man John Bryant, who picked up a questionable foul in the post and hit two free throws to ice a 51-50 win over USF to advance to the WCC semifinal round.

The game is the last for USF coach Eddie Sutton, who picked up his 800th career win with the Dons earlier this season and has said he won't return for another stint in San Francisco. The Broncos, meanwhile advance to face top-seeded Gonzaga in Sunday's WCC semifinal.

"I don't know what this league does," Sutton said with a smile on his face when asked about the foul that sealed the win for the Broncos. "They'd probably fine me... I'm not going to comment on officiating."

Continue reading "WCC: Sutton's Career Concludes on Questionable Call" »

Posted by Jason Owens at 10:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

SAN DIEGO -- With about four minutes remaining, San Francisco's Dior Lowhorn just fouled out. Though he's struggled tonight, tallying just 10 points and three rebounds, he's the Dons' go-to guy and leading scorer and rebounder on the season. With USF holding a 46-45 edge and time winding down, his loss is a big blow to Eddie Sutton's crew.

Posted by Jason Owens at 10:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

SAN DIEGO -- This game has looked more like a wrestling match than a basketball game lately as Santa Clara holds a 39-38 edge with 7:51 remaining. Needless to say, points are at a premium with neither team scoring in the last two-plus minutes.

There have been a lot of fouls down low and a lot of players put on the floor near the basket. This looks like tournament basketball.

Posted by Jason Owens at 10:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

SAN DIEGO -- Santa Clara continues its woeful shooting from long range (1-of-12), but has made some defensive adjustments to take control of the second half. USF hasn't had a good luck at a 3-pointer in the first four minutes and the Broncos have cut their 31-24 halftime deficit to a 32-32 tie. This game feels like it's will go down to the wire.

Posted by Jason Owens at 10:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

SAN DIEGO -- Maybe Eddie Sutton will survive to coach another day. Behind strong shooting from behind the arc, USF has a 31-24 lead at halftime. The Dons still haven't found an answer for John Bryant, who has 12 points and eight rebounds, but have countered with 4-of-9 shooting from long distance.

Continue reading "WCC: Sutton, Dons Up at Half" »

Posted by Jason Owens at 09:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

SAN DIEGO-- Barring a stunning upset this weekend or a change of heart from Eddie Sutton, he'll finish his career here at the Jenny Craig Pavilion. You'd think USF would hook him up with a pep band for the occasion.

But no, the Dons dance squad is stuck dancing to the public address music or the Santa Clara band. It's kind of sad.

Continue reading "WCC: Where's the Band?" »

Posted by Jason Owens at 09:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

SAN DIEGO -- Through the first eight minutes, San Francisco has an early 14-11 edge over the Broncos thanks to a pair of 3-pointers and some cold shooting from Santa Clara. Every USF game in this tournament has the potential to be a milestone with legendary coach Eddie Sutton on the sidelines. Sutton took over the reins in mid-season and proceeded to pick up his 800th career win.

Known for producing winners at every stop in his career, most notably at Kentucky and Oklahoma State, Sutton has said that USF's last game will be the last of his career. It definitely gives the early-round WCC tournament action an added edge.

Posted by Jason Owens at 09:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

SAN DIEGO -- As I'm watching warmups for tonight's quarterfinal round of WCC action, I realize that I may have the biggest challenge of the night at the Jenny Craig Pavilion.

Santa Clara (14-15, 6-8) and San Francisco (10-20, 6-9) tip off at 6 p.m. PST which happens to coincide with a certain game in Durham, N.C. As a Carolina alum, I clearly have a vested interest in tonight's Duke-Carolina game and am doing anything and everything I can to avoid the score so it will all be new to me on my DVR when I get home tonight.

Continue reading "WCC: Tunnel Vison in San Diego" »

Posted by Jason Owens at 08:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)