Gonzaga drills 17 3-pointers in stress-free 115-75 rout over Portland

Gonzaga’s stirring comebacks, clutch 3-pointers and nail-biting finishes were thoroughly entertaining.

But it’s also nice to play nearly flawless basketball from the opening tip, seize control and coast to the finish line with no worries about the outcome.

Instead of fans perched on the edge of their seats, some were hitting the exits at halftime as No. 8 Gonzaga built a 33-point lead and coasted to a 115-75 victory over Portland in front of 6,000 Saturday at the McCarthey Athletic Center.

The Zags’ 11th straight victory was stress-free following the late-game theatrics required in GU’s road victories over San Francisco, Santa Clara and BYU by a combined eight points.

“It’s just nice to maybe not have to sweat it down to the last possession or two and get all our guys in that deserve to get in,” Gonzaga coach Mark Few said. “It was important to get them in, obviously, that’s what makes it nice.”

Gonzaga (16-3, 5-0 West Coast Conference) had no issues turning its attention to the Pilots (9-11, 1-4) after Julian Strawther’s winning 3-pointer against BYU in Provo, Utah, less than 48 hours earlier.

“We had a good win on Thursday, but that game was in the past,” said guard Malachi Smith, who hit seven 3-pointers and finished with a season-high 27 points. “We wanted to just carry it over. That was the mentality – just be aggressive.”

The Zags, led by Smith, made a run at the McCarthey Athletic Center record of 18 3-pointers set in last year’s 104-72 rout over Portland, but settled for 17 on 38 attempts.

“I saw we had nine (3-pointers) at halftime and I was like, ‘Oh, we’re getting tacos early tonight,’ ” said forward Ben Gregg, referring to fans receiving free tacos if GU hits 10 3s in a game. “The fans were definitely happy about that one. I am, too. Hopefully, I get a gift card.”

Gonzaga cracked the 100-point mark for the sixth time this season and extended its home winning streak to 75, the longest in the nation. GU has won 15 in a row over the Pilots.

The Zags led by 10 with the game barely 5 minutes old. They led by 20 before the midpoint of the half. The margin was 26 with 7 minutes remaining.

Gonzaga hit the Pilots with a flurry of 3-pointers and mixed in plenty of points from close range. Smith hit a pair of 3s as GU’s lead grew to 23-5. Strawther’s 3 put Portland in a 28-8 hole.

Gonzaga held a 26-3 edge in points off turnovers, thanks to Portland’s 12 first-half turnovers. That played a role in the Zags 24-6 advantage in paint points, too.

The Pilots, who were in the top 30 nationally in made 3-pointers and 3-point percentage before getting hit by the injury bug at the outset of conference play, couldn’t connect from distance early.

“It was very nice to come out and shoot ball way we did,” Few said. “Our offensive numbers were terrific. They ended up hitting 11 (3-pointers), but I thought we did a nice job defending them, especially in the first half.”

Portland missed its first 10 3s before making five in a row. Gonzaga’s lead was 20 by the time Tyler Robertson connected from deep.

“Our DER (defensive efficiency rating) was at 0.5 for a while and ended up at .0.6 or 0.7 (in the first half), which is really good,” Few said. “It was a combination early of taking away their 3s, because they shot a lot of them and shoot them comfortably. And we did a good job protecting the rim.”

Drew Timme had four points and Smith, Rasir Bolton and Hunter Sallis made 3s as GU scored 15 unanswered points in the final 3 minutes to take a 61-28 halftime lead.

Timme played just 21 minutes after averaging 35.5 in the previous four games. The 6-foot-10 senior had 18 points and two assists. Six Zags reached double figures as Strawther scored 14 points, Nolan Hickman added 13 and Gregg and Anton Watson each had 12.

Sallis had seven of Gonzaga’s 22 assists and three of the team’s 12 steals.

Forward Moses Wood made four 3s and led Portland with 19 points. Robertson, who averages a team-high 14.6, finished with eight points.

The Zags hit 56.3% from the field and 44.7% from distance.

Portland had a smoother second half to finish at 41.5% overall, 33.3% behind the 3-point line.