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Gonzaga Basketball

Buzzer breakdown: Gonzaga’s blazing start, guard dominance and Braden Huff shines in starting lineup

Gonzaga Bulldogs forward Braden Huff (34) reacts after drawing a foul against the Georgia Bulldogs during the first half of the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday, Mar. 20, 2025, at INTRUST Bank Arena in Wichita, Kan. (Tyler Tjomsland/The Spokesman-Review)
By Jim Meehan jimm@spokesman.com(509) 459-5585

WICHITA, Kan. – Here are three observations from Gonzaga’s 89-68 win over Georgia on Thursday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Another blazing start for Zags

Gonzaga scored the first 13 points and bolted in front 27-3. GU made 11 of its first 14 shots from the field, 4 of 4 on 3-pointers and had one turnover. Meanwhile, Georgia was 1 of 11 from the field, 0 for 4 on 3s and committed seven turnovers.

Georgia cut into GU’s lead when the Zags were whistled for 12 first-half fouls, converting 10 of 14 free throws. Still, Gonzaga was in command 48-27 at halftime. The Zags held a 20-2 edge in points off turnovers after the opening 20 minutes.

Thursday’s opening burst was even better than Gonzaga’s fast start against Saint Mary’s in the West Coast Conference Tournament title game last week in Las Vegas. The Zags raced in front 20-7 against the Gaels and went on to a 58-51 victory.

Hickman, Battle put on show

Nolan Hickman and Khalif Battle lit up Georgia’s defense with a combined 29 points in the first half. Hickman buried all four of his 3-point attempts and finished with 15 points and three assists. Battle made two 3-pointers and scored 14 points to go with a team-high seven rebounds.

Hickman had a +27 plus/minus at half. Battle led all scorers with 24 points and hit four 3-pointers. Hickman finished with 18 points.

Two-big starting lineup 2 for 2

Gonzaga used its two-big starting lineup for the second consecutive game with sophomore Braden Huff joining senior Graham Ike. Gonzaga’s guards were the driving force in the Zags building a big early lead, but the bigs chipped in as well.

Huff, in just his third career start, had seven points and four boards in 14 first-half minutes, producing a team-high +29 plus/minus. Ike added four points but was limited to just eight-plus minutes with two fouls. Huff also had two fouls but managed to avoid picking up his third.

Huff finished with 18 points on 8-of-11 shooting from the field. Ike added 13 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the field.