Well, maybe the correct side was favored after all.
Gonzaga’s basketball team proved the oddsmakers correct Tuesday night, beating Saint Mary’s 58-51 in the West Coast Conference tournament final at Orleans Arena.
Despite the Gaels having beaten Gonzaga twice this season and in four of the past five meetings, the Zags were a pre-tournament favorite and were laying 3½ points Tuesday.
Saint Mary’s, by the way, never led.
“We’ve been in some grinders this season,” Zags coach Mark Few said. “We’ve been in some epic battles. We were able to fight through some things (Tuesday). It was about making plays and dictating things on the defensive end.”
For sure. Someone setting odds must have known something about Gonzaga’s defense.
The Zags (25-8) turned things up in the second half and did just enough to keep the Gaels (28-5) away. That, and nobody could make a shot.
Cold as ice
Saint Mary’s went through one stretch of 7:36 between field goals. It had climbed within three points at 50-47 while committing consecutive shot-clock violations. It was dreadful.
The Gaels just couldn’t get anything going offensively.
“Interesting game between two good teams,” Saint Mary’s coach Randy Bennett said. “To hold Gonzaga to 58 points, you think you’d win. But we didn’t. They’re a good team, but you just have to play better in that game than we did. You can’t play that way and expect to win.”
It was actually a cold night inside the arena for both teams. They combined to shoot 1 of 31 from 3-point range.
Read that part again. One of 31.
The Gaels were 0-for-16 from deep and had 18 turnovers, hardly the recipe you want in a tournament final. In any game, really.
The last time Saint Mary’s didn’t make a 3 in a game?
“I don’t remember it ever happening,” Bennett said. “I can’t think of a time. We were atrocious offensively tonight. They just didn’t turn it over. They had four, and we had 18. There you go. The game is right there.
“They were better grinding than we were.”
It’s not as if Gonzaga shot the nets off. The Zags made just 41.3 percent of their shots and were 1-for-15 from 3.
But they took care of the ball. They didn’t forfeit possessions. They were a more disciplined side.
And that’s what worked in the past when Gonzaga found success against Saint Mary’s. It turned the Gaels over.
It also had 20 points off those 18 miscues Tuesday night.
“Incredibly physical,” Few said. “I tip my hat to Saint Mary’s. They brought the best out in us over the years.”
Few’s decision to start sophomore Braden Huff at a forward spot paid off big time. He would score 18 points on 8-of-16 shooting. Graham Ike, who began his career at Wyoming in the Mountain West, was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. He finished with 11 points and seven rebounds.
“They were physical and it was just the way they were playing defense by doubling the post,” said Saint Mary’s center Mitchell Saxen, who scored a game-high 20 and grabbed seven of his team’s 43 rebounds. “We were just sloppy on that. We just need to be a little tougher and a little more dialed in. That was the difference in the game.”
Another WCC tournament final, another showdown between the Zags and Gaels.
Won’t last long
It was the eighth time in 10 years they have faced each other at this point of a season.
It also won’t last long. Gonzaga is on its way to the revamped Pac-12 in 2026, meaning a championship like this between it and Saint Mary’s has one more chance at occurring.
It all ends after next season.
“They’ve helped us get to the level we’re at,” Bennett said. “Iron sharpens iron. We’ve been going at it for a long time.
“We’ll totally miss them but we play them next year. But there’s no part of me that’s like, ‘Gosh, I’m glad they’re leaving.’ None of that. None of that at all.”
There shouldn’t be, of course. Two of the nation’s best programs fought it out again Tuesday night.
It was a grinder, all right. And the right side was favored.
Contact Ed Graney at egraney@reviewjournal.com. Follow @edgraney on X.