Gonzaga fends off BYU, sets sights on No. 1 spot
PROVO, Utah — Kelly Olynyk scored 19 points, Gary Bell Jr. hit four 3-pointers and No. 2 Gonzaga survived a Brigham Young rally for a 70-65 victory Thursday and its 10th outright conference title.
The Bulldogs (28-2, 15-0 West Coast) host Portland on Saturday and a win could mean Gonzaga’s first-ever No. 1 ranking. Indiana, the current top-ranked team, lost at Minnesota on Tuesday, creating an opportunity for the Bulldogs.
Gonzaga led by 11 points with 10:51 left but Brigham Young fought back. Consecutive 3-pointers by the Cougars’ Brock Zylstra, another by Craig Cusick and two free throws by Brandon Davies tied it at 60 with 4:18 remaining.
Olynyk hit a key jumper down the stretch and Kevin Pangos made two free throws to help seal it.
BYU had one final chance with 6.6 seconds remaining and down three points, but Gonzaga fouled Cusick before he could attempt a 3.
Tyler Haws led BYU (20-10, 9-6) with 19 points. Davies added 12 points and 11 rebounds in his final home game despite being plagued by foul trouble.
If Gonzaga ascends to the top ranking, the question remains whether the Bulldogs would be given a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament — something they have never achieved. Their losses this season were to Butler and Illinois when both were ranked No. 13.
Provided they defeat Portland, they will have won 12 straight games heading into the WCC tournament in Las Vegas.
The Bulldogs won the first meeting against BYU at home by 20 points. Olynyk was terrific in that game, shooting 9 of 9 from the field and 8 of 8 from the free-throw line for 26 points.
This time, he probably felt as if he were in a football game. It was rough-and-tumble from the start, with a former Cougars football player even called for an intentional foul on Olynyk as he drove the lane.
Olynyk finished 7 of 10 from the field.
Bell was the lone Gonzaga player to have any success shooting 3-pointers. Pangos was 1 of 12 from beyond the arc and the Bulldogs 6 of 30 total on 3s.
But Gonzaga held BYU to 36.5 percent overall shooting and had a marked advantage at the free-throw line. The Bulldogs made 20 of 34 attempts, compared to 13 of 22 by BYU.
BYU’s hopes of a seventh straight NCAA appearance might come down to winning the WCC tournament. Its streak of six consecutive 25-win seasons also is in jeopardy.
At least the Cougars know they pushed Gonzaga to the limit one time.
AROUND THE NATION
• HARRIS, VIRGINIA UPSET NO. 3 DUKE — At Charlottesville, Va., Joe Harris scored a career-high 36 points, and Virginia celebrated the 11-year anniversary of its last victory over a top-five team by doing it again, beating No. 3 Duke, 73-68.
Akil Mitchell added 19 points and 12 rebounds as he and Harris outplayed Duke’s top twosome of Seth Curry and Mason Plumlee, giving Virginia (20-8, 10-5 Atlantic Coast) its 16th consecutive victory at home. It came 11 years to the day since an 87-84 victory, also against No. 3 Duke.
Curry led Duke (24-4, 11-4) with 28 points and Quinn Cook had 22.
• SMITH FUELS NO. 16 BUCKEYES — At Evanston, Ill., Lenzelle Smith scored a season-high 24 points, and No. 16 Ohio State (21-7, 11-5 Big Ten) used a late run to gain a 63-53 win over Northwestern (13-16, 4-12).
