National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Gonzaga 117, Pepperdine 83
When: 9:00 PM ET, Saturday, January 8, 2022
Where: McCarthey Athletic Center, Spokane, Washington
Officials: # Marc Beasley, # Courtney Holmes, # Tommy Nunez Jr.
Attendance: 6000
By Field Level Media

Anton Watson scored 19 points and No. 4 Gonzaga showed no rust after an 11-day layoff while rolling to a 117-83 victory over Pepperdine in West Coast Conference play on Saturday night at Spokane, Wash.

Chet Holmgren recorded 18 points and eight rebounds and Drew Timme also scored 18 points as the Bulldogs (12-2, 1-0 WCC) defeated the Waves for the 42nd consecutive time.

Hunter Sallis added 13 points and Rasir Bolton and Julian Strawther scored 12 apiece as Gonzaga increased the nation's longest homecourt winning streak to 60 games. The Bulldogs set a season high for points, topping the 107 scored against Central Michigan on Nov. 22.

Houston Mallette scored 21 points for Pepperdine (6-10, 0-1), which lost its 24th consecutive contest in Spokane. The Waves' last road win in the series was a 65-64 triumph on Feb. 19, 1998.

Mike Mitchell Jr. and Jan Zidek tallied 16 points apiece and Maxwell Lewis scored 14 for Pepperdine, which is 0-8 away from home, including six road losses. The Waves shot 42.7 percent from the field and hit 10 of 27 from behind the arc.

Gonzaga shot 54.2 percent from the field and 10 of 25 from 3-point range while improving to 46-2 against the Waves during Mark Few's 23-year tenure as coach.

The Bulldogs played just three games in a 29-day span before taking the court Saturday. Gonzaga had its past three games postponed -- a Dec. 30 game at San Diego due to the Toreros' COVID-19 issues before the Bulldogs' own COVID troubles prompted games at Loyola Marymount (Jan. 1) and home versus San Francisco (Thursday) to be postponed.

Gonzaga shot 56.4 percent from the field in the first half to hold a 63-41 advantage.

The Bulldogs ripped off the first 10 points of the game and later rattled off 11 straight to open up a 26-7 lead with 13:59 remaining in the half.

Watson's layup increased Gonzaga's lead to 46-20 with 6:07 left in the half.

The Bulldogs' lead reached 30 for the first time when Andrew Nembhard buried a 3-pointer to make it 72-42 with 18:28 left in the game. Holmgren and Strawther followed with baskets to cap a 13-0 burst and increase the margin to 34 points.

Gonzaga's lead hit a game-high 40 when Sallis hit a jumper to make it 84-44 with 14:11 remaining.

Strawther's 3-pointer pushed the Bulldogs over 100, making it 102-67 with 5:50 to play.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Pepperdine   Gonzaga
Houston Mallette 21 Scoring Anton Watson 19
Darryl Polk Jr. 6 Assists Andrew Nembhard 8
Keith Fisher III 5 Rebounds Chet Holmgren 8
Houston Mallette 5 Free Throws Made Chet Holmgren 5
Maxwell Lewis 4 Steals Rasir Bolton 2
Carson Basham 2 Blocks Chet Holmgren 2
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Pepperdine 83 42.7 10-27 9-12 19 30 3 9 18
Gonzaga 117 54.2 10-25 17-23 26 47 5 12 13