Gonzaga Tames Cougars

No. 25 Gonzaga didn't capture any style points for its victory over Washington State on Monday night, but Bulldogs coach Mark Few will take the victory.

Gonzaga's 73-63 win came in a sloppy game with 56 fouls and 36 turnovers.

"It wasn't very aesthetically pleasing

but the bottom line is it's a win,"

Few said. "If it was rhythmic gymnastics or diving, we would have lost, because that was not what I would call Gonzaga-type execution."

Casey Calvary scored 19 points to lead the Bulldogs (3-0).

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Gonzaga never trailed in the game, but allowed the Cougars (2-2) to close to 56-51 with 6:55 remaining. The Bulldogs responded with a 10-3 run that included four points from Calvary and two 3-pointers by Mike Nilson.

Few credited his team's experience for helping it come back in the final minutes.

"It shows the character of a pretty experienced team," said Few, whose Bulldogs made a surprising run to the NCAA tournament's Elite Eight last season.

"That is one thing a lot of these kids know how to do is win."

Washington State coach Paul Graham credited his less experienced and smaller squad featuring five freshmen and nobody over 6-foot-8 for its effort.

"Gonzaga's a very, very good basketball team, and you can't make mistakes," he said. "The thing I like about my basketball team is we competed and we fought."

Calvary finished 7-for-10 from the field for Gonzaga, which also got 15 points from Matt Santangelo and 12 from Richie Frahm.

Thomas led Washington State with 19 points, hitting five of eight 3-point attempts. Milton Riley added 12 points.

Washington State was held to 34 percent from the field, and 25 percent in the first half Gonzaga shot 46 percent.

The Cougars now lead the series between the two Eastern Washington non-conference rivals 95-40, with 18 victories in the last 23 meetings.

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