Recap and highlights: Gonzaga downs top-ranked Duke to win Maui Invitational championship

LAHAINA, Hawaii – Brandon Clarke blocked RJ Barrett’s layup with one second remaining as third-ranked Gonzaga topped No. 1 Duke 89-87 to win the Maui Invitational championship on Wednesday at the Lahaina Civic Center.

Clarke finished with 17 points, six blocks and five rebounds for the Bulldogs (6-0), who held off a furious rally from the Blue Devils.

Trailing by as many as 16 points in the second half, Duke (5-1) stormed back in the final minutes, but couldn’t solve the defensive puzzle that was Clarke and Rui Hachimura for the Zags.

Hachimura was again dominant on the offensive end, scoring a team-high 20 points on 7 of 14 shooting. The junior forward also grabbed seven rebounds and dished out five assists.

Gonzaga shot 52.3 percent from the floor and 52.6 percent from 3-point range, while holding Duke to 43.1 shooting overall and 38.5 percent from deep.

Barrett led the Blue Devils with 23 points, while Zion Williamson added a double-double of 22 points and 10 rebounds.

Gonzaga will return to the mainland and the McCarthey Athletic Center on Monday to host North Dakota State at 6 p.m.

With the win, the Bulldogs could jump Kansas for the No. 1 spot in the Associated Press rankings, which will be released Monday morning.

Second half

Final – Gonzaga 89, Duke 87: Brandon Clarke again with the massive block to seal the deal as the Bulldogs upset top-ranked Duke.

Full recap online shortly

0:30 – Gonzaga 89, Duke 87: Two missed free throws by Brandon Clarke, but the GU defense again steps up to get the stop.

Rui Hachimura to the line but misses the first.

Timeout called by Gonzaga’s Mark Few.

0:30 – Gonzaga 89, Duke 87: Rui Hachimura and Brandon Clarke have been fantastic in the paint defensively for GU as a pair of blocks keeps the Blue Devils off the baord.

0:44 – Gonzaga 89, Duke 87: Tre Jones with back-to-back floaters for Duke. The speedy guard up to 17 points.

Zags going back inside to Brandon Clarke, who gets fouled but makes only one free throw.

Zion Williamson and Rui Hachimura trade buckets to keep the Zags up by a pair.

3:13 – Gonzaga 86, Duke 83: Exactly what the doctor ordered for the Zags as Brandon Clarke gets the tough basket with the foul.

Zags switch to a 3-2 zone to try and protect Rui Hachimura and Clarke from picking up their fifth fouls.

3:42 – Gonzaga 83, Duke 81: Duke storms back with some strong defense and some thunderous dunks, this time from RJ Barrett.

Barrett now up to 23 for Duke. He follows his slam by taking Rui Hachimura one-on-one to the bucket for an and-one call.

Momentum all Duke right now.

Zags found early success in the paint and working inside out, something they’ll have to get back to in these final minutes to close out the win.

5:35 – Gonzaga 81, Duke 75: Both teams now in the bonus, so this one could come down to which team coverts from the stripe.

Duke starting to look more confident on the offensive end, getting to the bucket for either easy looks for fouls.

Brandon Clarke checks back into the game for Gonzaga with four fouls, but even he cant stop Zion from throwing down a massive two-handed slam after an offensive board.

Williamson up to 20 points for Duke.

7:45 – Gonzaga 77, Duke 66: Gonzaga keeping its distance from the Blue Devils, even with defensive stopper Brandon Clarke on the bench.

Zags also getting to the free-throw line more as Duke starts to pick up the fouls. Freshman phenom Cam Reddish called for his fourth foul as he heads to the bench.

Zion Williamson up to 16 points for Duke, which is already in the double bonus.

10:05 – Gonzaga 75, Duke 63: Zach Norvell Jr. and Rui Hachimura battling for tournament MVP honors if Gonzaga holds on to win this one. Snacks up to 16 points, including 4 of 5 from 3-point range, while Rui has 16 points, four assists and three rebounds.

Gonzaga’s shooting has come back to earth a bit this half (57.9 percent), but the Blue Devils are hitting just 38.9 percent of their shots this half.

11:25 – Gonzaga 70, Duke 59: Brandon Clarke again showing his skill on the defensive side of the ball. The San Jose State transfer with two blocks and a forced travel on one possession.

Filip Petrusev the fourth Zag into double figures. The freshman center has 11 points on 5 of 7 shooting.

Zion Williamson matching Clarke on the dunk front as the pair are dominating on defense in the paint.

Josh Perkins (7 points, 7 assists) nails a big triple for GU to get the lead back to double figures, but Clarke picks up his fourth foul on the next possession and will have to head to the bench.

15:44 – Gonzaga 61, Duke 47: This one is getting out of hand quickly as Gonzaga is shooting the lights out of the Lahaina Civic Center.

Zags open the second half making their first six shots from the floor.

Meanwhile the lid is getting tighter for Duke. A normal easy slam from Zion Williamson won’t go down – a pretty good description of how the game has gone for the top-ranked Blue Devils.

A trio of Gonzaga players now into double figures (Rui Hachimura 14, Zach Norvell Jr. 13 and Brandon Clarke 11).

A big Zion block leads to a Tre Jones bucket going into the media break, but there’s still a big mountain to climb if Duke wants to get back into this one.

First half

Halftime – Gonzaga 47, Duke 39: Scary moment for the Bulldogs as Rui Hachimura hits his head hard on the floor. Looks like he’ll be fine though as he stays in the game.

Josh Perkins joins the offensive party for the Bulldogs with a pair of 3-pointers. RJ Barrett answers with a triple of his own for the Blue Devils.

Duke had not trailed for more than 18 seconds in any game this season. GU has led nearly from the start of this one. Best half of basketball Gonzaga has played in a very long time.

Slight blow at the end of the half as Tre Jones hits a buzzer-beating 3-pointer for Duke to cut GU’s lead to single digits.

GU shoots 64.5 percent overall and 60 percent from deep in the first half, while holding Duke to 44.1 percent overall and 42.9 from 3-point range.

Duke winning the battle on the boards (17-15), while Gonzaga has dished out eight assists to Duke’s five.

Brandon Clarke and Corey Kispert with two fouls for Gonzaga in the first half.

Hachimura leads all scorers with 12 points. Barrett with 11 for Duke

3:56 – Gonzaga 42, Duke 31: Rui Hachimura the first player into double figures. The Gonzaga junior forward uses a strong move to the basket for the bucket and foul.

Zion Williamson also into double figures for the Blue Devils with 10 points.

Filip Petrusev quietly having a stellar game for the Bulldogs with seven points, while Zach Norvell Jr. has 10.

Gonzaga flying around in this one and Duke is looking a little lackadaisical, forcing Coach K to call a timeout.

Bulldogs also shooting 72 percent from the floor, a stat that is near-impossible for any team to try and stop. Zags starting to pull away a little bit, Duke looking shocked.

7:34– Gonzaga 31, Duke 25: Bulldogs shooting 68.4 percent from the floor and 62.5 percent from deep. Total change from the first-half struggles the Bulldogs had in their first two games of the tournament.

Duke shooting 45.5 percent, but the Blue Devils are being aided by seven offensive rebounds and a 6-0 advantage on second-chance points.

Turnovers starting to pile up for both teams (five apiece), while Gonzaga nearing foul trouble faster than the Blue Devils (6-3)

Zion Williamson and Rui Hachimura having some fun battles on both ends of the floor, but GU struggling a bit to guard the big man when Rui switches off. Williamson has eight points, while Duke’s other standout freshman, RJ Barrett (six points) and Cam Reddish (two points) still haven’t found a feel for the game.

Continuing an early theme of big men connecting from deep, Gonzaga’s Filip Petrusev drains a straight-away triple.

11:39– Gonzaga 22, Duke 18: After a hot night shooting on Tuesday against Arizona, Zach Norvell Jr. hits his first two 3-pointer of the game for Gonzaga. He has six early points.

Duke looked to have another slip to add to its highlight reel, but reserve guard Tre Jones misses a transition dunk, leading to a nifty layup from Brandon Clarke. The GU big man is up to nine points.

Zion Williamson showing he’s more than a dunk machine with a nice baseline spin and score on Rui Hachimura. The next possession he gets Corey Kispert off balance and draws a cheap foul. Williamson with six points and three rebounds.

15:24– Duke 12, Gonzaga 10: Gonzaga feeling it from deep early on as Rui Hachimura and Brandon Clarke connect from 3-point range.

On the other end of the floor, Duke’s Zion Williamson has a quick four points as the Blue Devils have interior size and speed that GU hasn’t faced yet this season.

Both offenses having little trouble scoring in the early going, especially Clarke. The GU big man with a massive swat on Williamson, followed by a put-back slam on the other end of the court. He has five points, as does Hachimura.

Not sure this one will be a low-scoring affair if the opening minutes are any indication.

Gonzaga announces starting 5 against Duke

Gonzaga roster

Duke roster

Last game: Gonzaga 91, Arizona 78

Rui Hachimura scored 24 points, Zach Norvell Jr. added 20 and No. 3 Gonzaga earned a spot in the Maui Invitational title game with a 91-74 win over Arizona Tuesday night.

Gonzaga (5-0) was out of synch late in the first half after a good start, falling into an eight-point hole.

The Zags turned the Lahaina Civic Center into The Kennel West early in the second, the cheers growing louder with each basket during a 15-2 run that put them up 56-53.

Two-time Maui champion Arizona (4-1) fought back to keep it close, but only for a little while. Gonzaga went on another run, pushing the lead 79-67 and kept the Wildcats at bay from there.

The Zags will face five-time Maui champion and top-ranked Duke in Wednesday’s title game.

Justin Coleman had 28 points for Arizona, which had three assists on 21 made field goals. – Associated Press