Difference makers: Ryan Nembhard, Braden Huff spark Gonzaga’s 81-65 win over Roadrunners,

Ryan Nembhard

The junior point guard delivered a steady, solid performance. He did a lot of damage in the midrange and with floaters in the lane. Nembhard made 8 of 12 shots, scored a team-high 22 points, topping his 16-point effort vs. Yale as his highest scoring game of the young season. Nembhard nailed a 3-pointer after the Roadrunners had trimmed a 22-point deficit to 13 with 4 minutes remaining. He added five assists and had two turnovers on the stat sheet, though the first was actually a nice pass that went through a teammate’s hands in the lane.

Braden Huff

The redshirt freshman had a strong stretch late in the first half, scoring eight of the Zags’ last 12 points to stretch GU’s halftime lead to 44-29. Huff had a pair of putbacks, a dunk and a couple of field goals in the lane for his 10 first-half points. He made all five of his shot attempts. He finished 5 of 7 from the field, hit both of his free-throw attempts and finished with 12 points in 18 minutes. He added three rebounds, one assist and no turnovers.

Turning point

There wasn’t a prolonged, decisive run in the opening half. GU gradually built a 20-9 lead before the Roadrunners closed to 26-20. From there, the Zags outscored the visitors 18-9, including 6-2 in the final 90 seconds of the half, to take a 44-29 advantage . The Roadrunners never got closer than 11 points in the closing half.