SPOKANE — By the end of a first half filled with missed shots, the fact that Portland scored first was just a vague memory.
That’s because the Pilots’ second basket came more than 7 minutes and 30 seconds later. Their next points came on two free throws after another 4 minutes and 20 seconds.
Gonzaga wasn’t exactly lighting it up at 34.3% from the field in the opening half, but it hardly mattered due to Portland’s penchant for dry spells and turnovers.
It added up to an 18-point halftime lead, and the only question was whether the Zags would be able to maintain or build on it — three days after an 18-point lead against Pepperdine melted to three in the closing half in Malibu.
The 19th-ranked Zags had a wobbly stretch at the outset of the second half, but quickly recovered and coasted to an 81-50 West Coast Conference victory Thursday in front of a crowd of 9,022 at the Spokane Arena.
“It was addressed this whole week,” said senior forward Ben Gregg, who was in the starting lineup in place of Michael Ajayi. “The way we’ve come out in the second half is unacceptable. We have leads or it’s a close game and come out flat in the second half and can’t get stops.
“We still were a little flat coming out (Thursday) but we buckled down and got it right.”
Gregg had a solid stat line with nine rebounds, seven points, four steals and two assists. Perhaps more importantly Gregg’s and Ajayi’s defense helped limit Pilots’ top scorer Austin Rapp to six points — he averages 14.4 — on 2-of-8 shooting.
The 6-foot-10 freshman from Australia matched his season-low point total and committed four turnovers.
“Ben and Mike did a nice job, and then we had some very good switches where we talked our way through them,” Zags coach Mark Few said. “And we were alert, which we weren’t especially in that second half against Pepperdine. After a little ratty kind of start, we took good care of the ball. We only had two turnovers in the second half.”
Gonzaga (11-4, 2-0 WCC) also heated up from the 3-point line after going a combined 9 of 39 in a loss to UCLA and a win over Pepperdine. It looked like it might be a long night as four different Zags missed the team’s first four 3-point attempts.
GU connected on 6 of its next 9 from distance and coupled with a 9-0 edge in points off turnovers, the Zags’ lead reached 21 points.
The Pilots (5-11, 0-3) were sitting on seven points before scoring 10 points in the final 4:19 with five of their seven first-half field goals. They still trailed 35-17 at the break. It was the fewest points Gonzaga has allowed in the first half of a WCC contest since leading Santa Clara 44-15 in 2013.
“I thought it was great,” Few said of Gonzaga’s first-half defense. “Portland does some different actions that you don’t often see. We were alert and we defended it great. We were physical and had multiple guys in there helping us on the glass.”
Both teams dialed in their shooting stroke early in the second half. Portland, which has lost 19 straight to the Zags, cut the deficit to 47-33 before Gonzaga pulled away with a 19-6 spurt.
Dusty Stromer buried a 3-pointer, and Ryan Nembhard hit a mid-range jumper. Stromer added two layups, and Nolan Hickman scored eight straight points as Gonzaga opened up a 66-39 lead.
Gonzaga made 11 of 24 3-pointers, led by Hickman’s 3 of 5.
“It’s a lot different (when 3s drop),” said Stromer, who made 2 of 5 and was one of six Zags with at least one triple. “It felt good to see them go down. Hopefully it’ll build from here.”
Hickman’s 13 points led five Zags in double figures and three more scored between five and nine points. Nembhard rang up nine of GU’s 20 assists.
“I think the whole team did a great job of balancing it,” Hickman said. “That’s one thing we’ve been preaching in practice. They’re going to give you some wide-open 3s, but just take the right ones. Other than that, making sure we filter in some paint points for sure.”
The Pilots, who came in averaging 79 points, were held to a season-low 50 and made just 33.3% from the field.
The Zags return to Los Angeles to face Loyola Marymount on Saturday, their fourth game in eight days and third in the L.A. area.
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