March Madness: Gonzaga’s big-men lead Zags to first NCAA national championship game

The Gonzaga Bulldogs are headed to their first NCAA national championship game on Monday night.

The Gonzaga Bulldogs earned a berth in the 2017 NCAA National Championship by holding off a talented South Carolina Gamecocks’ squad 75-72 in the first semifinal game in Glendale, Arizona, on April 1.

Gonzaga (37-1) got 36 points and 22 rebounds from its bigs and the Bulldogs were able to withstand three second-half scoring droughts to advance to the 2017 NCAA Tournament finals. The Bulldogs, who had a considerable size advantage, were determined to ride their two 7-footers, and, boy, did the Zags’ twin towers deliver.

“To be playing the last game of the year, that’s crazy cool,” Gonzaga coach Mark Few said.

7-1 senior center Przemek Karnowski and 7-0 freshman forward Zach Collins combined for 27 points, on 12 of 22 shooting from the field, and 18 rebounds. Karnowski, who got off to a quick start, had 13 points to go along with five rebounds and three assists. But it was Collins who stole the show.

Collins produced his finest game of his young career with his first career double-double. The 19-year old was all over the court, causing havoc for the Gamecocks the entire game. Collins showed off his athleticism and shot-making ability throughout the game. He shot 6 of 10 from the floor to finish with 14 points. He also set career highs with 13 rebounds and six blocks.

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Gonzaga scored five of the first nine points in the second half to extend its lead to 50-39, which was South Carolina’s biggest deficit in the NCAA tournament. Five straight points by Nigel Williams-Goss extended the Zags’ lead to 65-51 with 10:55 to go.

South Carolina then went 16-0 run to take its first lead (67-65) since holding a 10-8 advantage. However, Collins responded with his biggest shot of the evening on the Bulldogs’ next possession. With the shot clock winding down, Collins flat three-point shot somehow banged off the backboard into the hoop.    ]

On the very next possession, Williams-Goss once again got into the teeth of the Gamecock defense. This time he dumped it off to Karnowski for a flush to put the Zags up 70-67.

Following two free throws by Johnathan Williams, Gonzaga led 74-69 with three minutes left. Josh Perkins fouled Sindarius Thornwell with the Bulldogs up by three with 3.5 seconds remaining. Thornwell made the first of two free throws to make it 75-73. He missed the second on purpose but the Gamecocks weren’t able to come down with the ball. Instead, freshman Killian Tillie grabbed the board and sealed the game with a pair of free throws — his only points of the game.

Williams-Goss poured in a game-high 23 points with 12 coming in the first half. He made 9 of 16 shots from the floor while adding six assists as well as five rebounds. Williams, who did an excellent job defensively, had seven points and two rebounds. Jordan Mathews contributed 12 points with all his points coming on four made three-pointers.

Gonzaga shot 48.3% percent from the field and limited South Carolina to just 39.7% shooting. The Bulldogs held an advantage in points in the paint, bench points, and field goals made behind the arc. The Gamecocks made three more free throws than the Zags attempted (16-13). South Carolina (26-11) also won the turnover battle, points off turnovers and fast break points.

Sophomore P.J. Dozier led South Carolina with 17 points and nine rebounds. Thornwell, the team’s leading scorer, had 15 points, and Duane Notice finished with 10. Chris Silva also had a terrific game, tallying 13 points along with 13 rebounds and three blocks.

The game started out with a blistering pace. Gonzaga made 9 of its first 16. In the meanwhile, South Carolina started out hot, making 7 of 14 shots, but then went on a little shooting slump as they missed six of their next seven attempts.

Next: Final Four: Three takeaways from Gonzaga’s thrilling win over SC

South Carolina was able to stay in the game during the first 15 minutes due to its relentless rebounding efforts and ability to create turnovers on the defensive end. Justin Mckie, who scored eight big points off the bench, knocked down a three-pointer with 5:14 left in the first half to knot the game at 31-31. However, the Zags closed the half on a 14-5 run to take a 45-36 lead. Williams-Goss and Mathews combined to score 12 points during the spurt.