San Diego

No. 3 Gonzaga Pulls Away Late to Beat Toreros

USD shows well in front of sold-out crowd but falls to 3rd-ranked Bulldogs

Gonzaga is ranked third in the nation and has not lost a West Coast Conference road game since St. Mary's got them in January 2016.

If the Toreros had beaten them in front of a sold out crowd at Jenny Craig Pavilion it would have been a monster upset. USD gave the Bulldogs a run for their money but against one of the only two teams to beat Duke this season the Toreros simply didn't have enough in a 79-67 loss.

Much like the last time they played, USD was able to keep it close for a while. With 45 seconds to play in the first half, Olin Carter III nailed a 3-pointer to send it to the break tied 30-30.

The two teams traded buckets for a while and then Gonzaga went on a 10-2 run punctuated by a Rui Hachimura dunk that put the Dogs up by eight. That was a margin the Toreros were never really able to make up.

Hachimura finished with 22 points and 10 rebounds, both game highs. USD was led by senior guard Isaiah Pineiro's 20 points and five rebounds.

The biggest difference in this game was ... well, being big. The Toreros used a four-guard lineup and were better than the Zags from the outside but they just don't have the same kind of size down low. USD was outrebounded 35-26 and the Zags outscored the Toreros 50-16 in the paint.

San Diego has lost three straight games, falling to 16-11 overall and 5-7 in the WCC. They have four games left in the regular season. Next on the schedule is a Thursday night home game against Portland.

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