No. 13 Gonzaga routs Nicholls to snap rare two-game skid

Field Level Media|published: Wed 18th December, 23:17 2024

NCAA Basketball: Nicholls State at Gonzaga

Dec 18, 2024; Spokane, Washington, USA; Gonzaga Bulldogs forward Braden Huff (34) shoots the ball against Nicholls State Colonels forward Mekhi Collins (0) in the first half at McCarthey Athletic Center. Mandatory Credit: James Snook-Imagn Images

Braden Huff scored 25 points on 11-of-12 shooting to help No. 13 Gonzaga cruise to a 102-72 victory over Nicholls on Wednesday night at Spokane, Wash.

Graham Ike added 20 points and Ryan Nembhard had 18 points and 10 assists as the Bulldogs (8-3) broke a two-game slide. It was the program's first back-to-back losses since December 2018.

Nolan Hickman contributed 11 points, six rebounds and five assists, Ben Gregg had 10 points and 10 rebounds and Dusty Stromer also scored 10 points for Gonzaga, which scored 14 in a row late in the first half en route to taking a 14-point halftime advantage.

Byron Ireland recorded 16 points and four steals and Michael Gray Jr. added 14 points for Nicholls (7-5), which had a five-game winning streak snapped.

Mekhi Collins had 12 points, Rob Brown III added 11 and Jamal West Jr. scored 10 for the Colonels, who made 36 percent of their field-goal attempts and were 10 of 33 from behind the arc.

Gonzaga shot a stellar 64.8 percent from the field, including 8 of 17 from 3-point range.

Nicholls held its own for the first 14 minutes before Gonzaga displayed its dominance.

Still, the Colonels trailed by just 12 after a basket by Emarion Ellis with 15:29 left in the game.

A few minutes later, the Bulldogs went on a 10-2 burst to take a 76-56 lead on Huff's basket with 7:56 to play.

Stromer buried a 3-pointer to make it 81-58 with 6:42 remaining, and Gonzaga sailed to the finish.

Huff scored 13 points and Ike added 12 as Gonzaga led 43-29 at the break.

Nicholls took it to the Bulldogs early, holding a 11-5 lead after a 3-pointer by Gray with 15:40 left in the half.

The Colonels were later up 25-21 on a 3-pointer by Sincere Malone with 7:11 left before Gonzaga took over.

Huff scored five straight points to put the Bulldogs ahead, before Nicholls regained the lead at 27-26 on a dunk by Collins with 5:43 remaining.

Ike drained a 3-pointer to start the 14-0 burst, and Michael Ajayi followed with the next four points to give the Bulldogs a 33-27 lead with 3:25 to play.

Nembhard hit a jumper and Ike scored five straight points to cap the burst.

--Field Level Media

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