Recap and highlights: Adama-Alpha Bal makes go-ahead layup as Santa Clara upsets No. 23 Gonzaga 77-76
SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Mark Few’s 700th career victory will have to wait.
Adama-Alpha Bal scored the go-ahead basket with 4.6 seconds left to lift Santa Clara past No. 23 Gonzaga 77-76 in a West Coast Conference basketball game on Thursday night, the Broncos’ first win over GU since 2011.
With Gonzaga leading 76-75 with 12 seconds left, Ryan Nembhard missed the front end of a 1-and-1. Bal grabbed the rebound and drove the length of the court, scoring the go-ahead bucket and drawing a foul on GU’s Nolan Hickman. Bal missed his foul shot, Anton Watson rebounded, but threw the ball away in the waning seconds.
On a night when Gonzaga made just 2 of 20 from 3-point range and was outrebounded 44-31, it took a career-night from Watson for the Zags to stay within striking distance of the inspired Broncos. Watson tied his career-high with 32 points and also grabbed nine rebounds.
Nembhard’s jumper with 1:09 left gave Gonzaga a 76-72 lead. Nembhard finished with 21 points.
After trailing by as many as 13 points early, Gonzaga (11-5, 2-1) clawed back behind five straight points from Braden Huff to take a 58-56 lead with 11:37 left. Huff finished with 14 points while logging heavier minutes in place of starting center Graham Ike, who picked up his fourth foul early in the second half.
With legendary Broncos guard and NBA Hall of Famer Steve Nash sitting courtside, Santa Clara (12-6, 3-0) got off to a fast start, grabbing an 8-2 lead in the opening minutes. The Broncos’ lead grew to 38-25 on a driving layup by Jalen Benjamin with 2:28 left in the half.
Gonzaga answered with Huff’s 3-pointer, spurring a 9-2 burst that brought GU to within 40-34 at halftime.
Few’s quest for 700 career victories will have to wait a week. GU travels to Pepperdine next Thursday. Gonzaga will likely fall out of the AP Top 25 poll, breaking a streak of 143 straight weeks.
Santa Clara entered with 26 straight defeats to GU.
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First half
19:28 – SC 2, GU 0: Marshall opens the scoring after both teams trade turnovers and the Zags miss their first two attempts from the floor.
15:51 – SC 8, GU 2: Woeful start for the Zags, who are 1 of 7 from the field and are being out-rebounded 6-2 at the first media timeout.
Broncos finding success inside with six points in the paint. SC is 4 of 6 from the field.
13:12 – GU 13, SC 13: Zags tie it up in an instant with back-to-back steals and layups from Watson.
Watson up to nine points on 4 of 4 shooting. He and Ike (four points) are the only Zags scorers.
10:28 – SC 18, GU 15: Broncos retake the lead on a 3-pointer.
SC 2 of 7 on 3s, while GU is 0 of 5. Zags have scored all their points inside with Watson up to a team-high 11.
7:44 – SC 23, GU 19: Zags outside shooting still letting them down. Now 0 of 7 in the game with a couple of ugly attempts.
Nembhard scores four points to join Watson (11) and Ike (four) as the only Zags scorers today. Knapper leads seven Broncos scorers with six.
3:45 – SC 30, GU 23: Gonzaga is forcing plenty of turnovers (11), but not making anything of it, as Santa Clara widens its lead at the U4 media timeout.
GU with just six points off turnover, as its 0 of 10 on 3-point attempts. Watson the only Zag getting it done on offense with 23 points.
2:44 – SC 36, GU 25: Bala hits a 3-pointer and the Zags call a timeout as the Broncos lead reached double figures.
No life in the Zags at the moment, as they allow an offensive rebound on a missed free throw. Ike is out of the game with three fouls.
0:44 – SC 40, GU 31: Watson hits the first of two free throws and the Broncos call a timeout. Huff gives the Zags a little life with their first 3-pointer of the game. Now 1 of 12 in the half.
Halftime
Gonzaga closed the half on a needed 6-0 run to cut Santa Clara’s lead to 40-34 at halftime.
GU had woeful stretches in the first half, leading to the Broncos taking a 13-point lead despite having 11 turnovers. Mainly, the Zags shot 1-for-12 on 3-point attempts and were out-rebounded 27-11.
Watson leads the team with 17 points, while Huff scored five down the stretch to key the run before half. Ike (four points) may start the second half on the bench with three fouls.
Santa Clara will need to limit its turnovers to maintain its lead in the second half.
Second half
18:19 – SC 42, GU 36: Watson gives up a turnover and Ike is called for his fourth foul. He’ll head to the bench for awhile.
15:57 – SC 51, GU 42: Santa Clara knocks down back-to-back corner 3s on poor defensive possessions from GU and the Zags call a timeout.
Broncos 7 of 17 on 3-pointers in the game.
Zags asking Watson to do everything on offense. He’s up to 23 points (10 of 11 from the field) and is backing down opponents to find a shot on practically every possession.
11:21 – GU 58, SC 56: Huff gives the Zags the lead with back-to-back layups at the U12 media timeout. Gregg is called on a foul and the Broncos will shoot two when play resumes.
Great run from GU, led by Huff, who is up to 14 points on 6 of 8 shooting.
8:00 – GU 63, SC 61: Watson gets a steal at the U8 timeout, as both teams are scrapping on either side of the court.
Watson has a team-high 26 points, while Nembhard (17) and Huff (14) join him in double figures. Ike (4) and Hickman (2) are the only other Zags to score.
4:13 – GU 70, SC 70: Zags take the lead, but they give up another uncontested 3-pointer from the corner to tie it up. GU calls a timeout.
Ike back on the floor for the Zags, needs to avoid picking up his fifth foul, though Huff played well in his place.
1:00 – GU 76, SC 72: Nembhard with a huge step-back jumper to give the Zags a two-possession lead as time winds down. SC calls a timeout.
Nembhard has 21 points and five assists. Watson ties his career-high with 32 points to go with eight rebounds and six steals.
0:22 – GU 76, SC 74: Broncos get an easy dunk and a stop. They call a timeout with the shot clock off and a chance to take the lead or tie.
0:14 – GU 76, SC 75: Zags cling to a lead as Bal makes one of two free throws. GU will need to inbound the ball and hit their free throws after a SC timeout.
Ike is out with five fouls.
0:04 – SC 77, GU 76: Nembhard misses a free throw and Bal comes through after his miss with an and-1 layup. Zags call a timeout and will need an answer after the free throw attempt.
0:00 – SC 77, GU 76: Watson has nowhere to go after a rebound on the free throw and the Broncos win.
Santa Clara snaps GU’s 26-game win streak over them and the Zags are likely going to drop out of the top 25 for the first time since 2016.
Pregame
Mark Few is on the cusp of joining an elite club.
Gonzaga’s coach is one win away from career No. 700. A win tonight at Santa Clara and Few would become the 37th men’s coach to do so and the second-fastest since Kentucky’s Adolph Rupp accomplished the feat in 837 games.
Tipoff is set for 6:30 p.m. on ESPN.
Accolades aside, the Zags (11-4, 2-0 West Coast) are in search of their first true road game of the season. How they fare against the Broncos (11-6, 2-0), who figure to be one of the best teams in the conference this year, will be a good barometer for the rest of GU’s conference schedule.
Gonzaga opened WCC play with routs of Pepperdine and San Diego last week in Spokane. SCU, meanwhile, edged Loyola Marymount and Pepperdine on the road.
The Broncos picked up nonconference wins over Pac-12 teams Stanford, Oregon and Washington State, but lost lost to three Mountain West teams in New Mexico, Utah State and San Jose State. SCU also lost to Yale, which Gonzaga handled in its season-opener.
GU is playing its first true road game since losing at Washington on Dec. 9.
Series history
Gonzaga holds a 70-30 all-time series lead over Santa Clara and has won the last 26 meetings since 2011. The Zags won the last meeting 88-70 in Santa Clara, opening up a 43-24 lead at halftime.
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