Recap and highlights: Drew Timme, Julian Strawther combine for 62 points as Gonzaga holds off Pepperdine 97-88
MALIBU, Calif. – From the opening tip it was clear Gonzaga wouldn’t coast to an easy victory over Pepperdine, the same way it did against Loyola Marymount two days prior.
The Bulldogs turned to its leading scorers, Drew Timme and Julian Strawther, who combined for 62 points as the Zags beat the Waves 97-88 at Firestone Fieldhouse.
Timme, who scored a team-high 34 points on 15-for-20 shooting, scored the Zags first 12 points in the second half. The 13-th ranked Bulldogs (22-5, 11-2 West Coast Conference) led for over 27 minutes and the entire second half, but the game never felt out of reach.
The Waves (9-19, 2-12) had three scorers at least 20 points, as Houst Mallette (22), Jevon Porter (20) and Maxwell Lewis (20) had them threatening down the stretch.
Mallette made a 3-pointer with 3:50 remaining to cut the Zags lead to one point. That was as close as they’d get. Rasir Bolton made a 3-pointer on the other end and after Porter cut the lead back to two, Strawther again pushed it back to four points with 2:31 left.
Bolton scored 10 of his 12 points in the final 4 minutes.
First half
18:23 – GU 6, UP 4: Strawther and Hickman made back-to-back 3-pointer to give the Zags the lead.
15:39 – UP 9, GU 8: Not as strong of a start for Gonzaga today, open 3 of 8 from the field at the first media timeout. Pepperdine is 4 of 9.
11:37 – GU 17, UP 16: Waves hanging early, as Sallis draws a charge on Lewis at the U12 media timeout.
Strawther and Watson lead the Zags with five points apiece. Mallette leads UP with six.
8:41 – UP 26, GU 21: Mallette makes a transition 3-pointer and Gonzaga calls a timeout. Six straight makes for the Waves.
5:00 – UP 33, GU 32: Hickman fouls Lewis on a 3-pointer, who makes all three free throws.
Strawther is single-handedly keeping Gonzaga in the game, shooting 7-for-10 from the field and up to a team-high 16 points. He’s become the Zags main scoring option the past three games.
3:32 – GU 36, UP 35: Bolton puts the Zags back in front at the U4 media timeout with mid-range jumper.
Halftime
Julian Strawther closed a strong first half with a 3-pointer to give Gonzaga its largest lead of the game, 50-42 over Pepperdine at Firestone Fieldhouse in Malibu, California.
Strawther scored 19 points on 8 of 11 shooting from the field. Drew Timme added 12, as the Zags shot 59% and made 5 of 11 3-point attempts.
Pepperdine led for 9:28 in the half, shooting 58% and making four 3s. Houst Mallette lead with 13 points, while Maxwell Lewis added 10.
Second half
16:38 – GU 58, UP 52: Timme scores the Zags first eight points out of halftime, but the Waves aren’t going away, on a 6-0 run.
15:36 – GU 60, UP 54: Timme makes a layup through contact at the U16 media timeout. He’s up to a team-high 22 points.
Lewis leads Pepperdine with 17.
11:57 – GU 64, UP 58: Timme called for his third foul at the U12 media timeout. He has 24 points.
Zags haven’t hit a 3-pointer in the second half.
7:29 – GU 72, UP 63: Zags keeping Pepperdine at arms length into the U8 media timeout.
Timme has 28 points, while Strawther adds 21. Only three Bulldogs have scored this half: Timme (16), Watson (4) and Strawther (2).
5:20 – GU 78, UP 72: Gonzaga calls a timeout after a layup from Mallette. Pepperdine has made its last three shots.
3:23 – GU 81, UP 77: Bolton makes a crucial 3-poitner and and Watson is called for his fourth foul on the other end, leading to the final media timeout. Pepperdine has made 5 of their last 6 attempts.
0:41 – GU 92, UP 84: Strawther makes a runner and that will likely clinch the victory for the Zags.
Pregame
It would be hard to find a more complete performance from Gonzaga this season than Thursday’s 108-65 rout of Loyola Marymount.
With March nearing, the Zags won’t want to let their foot off the pedal.
Gonzaga continues its West Coast Conference road trip at Pepperdine today at 4 p.m. The game will be broadcast on KHQ and Root Sports.
The 13th-ranked Bulldogs (22-5, 11-2 WCC) caught fire from the opening tip on Thursday, taking a 20-point lead in the first 7 minutes and leading by 40 at halftime.
The Zags rolled the Waves (9-18, 2-11) by a score of 111-88 in their WCC opening on Dec. 31. It will hope to replicate that result with just three conference games remaining and a chance for the regular-season title on the line.
Gonzaga is one game behind Saint Mary’s, with the conference finale against the Gaels scheduled for Feb. 25 in Spokane.
The Bulldogs have the easier of the remaining schedule, playing last place Pepperdine today and second-to-last San Diego on Thursday.
Saint Mary’s hosts Brigham Young tonight at 7 p.m. and Pacific on Thursday.
Series history
Gonzaga holds a 64-31 all-time series lead over Pepperdine, winning each of the last 43 meetings. The Zags haven’t lost to the Waves since Jan. 18, 2002.
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