Published:Saturday, November 29, 2008 6:13 AM PST
Serving the South Coast of Oregon

College Hoops: Gonzaga gets win at tourney
Saturday, November 29, 2008 6:13 AM PST

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Gonzaga coach Mark Few wasn’t surprised by Maryland’s big win over Michigan State on Thursday.

“That wasn’t an eye-opener to me,” he said. “If you paint Maryland into a corner they come out with a win every time.”

The No. 9 Bulldogs managed to hold down the Terrapins on Friday, getting 22 points from Josh Heytvelt in an 81-59 victory in the semifinals of the Old Spice Classic.

“We did everything well and it wore on them,” Heytvelt said.

The Terrapins made nine of 19 3-pointers in the 80-62 upset of No. 5 Michigan State but went 1-for-13 from beyond the arc against Gonzaga, which pulled away in the second half.

“Coming off last night, I didn’t know what to expect,” Terps coach Gary Williams said. “It was a great win and I was hoping we’d have carried the momentum into this game.”

The Bulldogs (4-0) advanced to the tournament championship Sunday against Tennessee, a 90-78 winner over Georgetown in the other semi. The Vols beat Gonzaga 82-72 in Seattle last season.

Greivis Vasquez had 16 points for Maryland (4-1), which will play the Hoyas for third place. The Terrapins shot 38 percent and were outrebounded 41-30.

Austin Daye had 17 points and 10 rebounds for Gonzaga, which finished a close first half with a 10-2 run to take a 38-29 halftime lead.

California 73, UNLV 55

LAS VEGAS — Jerome Randle had a game-high 18 points and Theo Robertson added 12 points to lead California past host UNLV 73-55 at the Global Sports Classic on Friday.

Cal (5-0) led 54-34 midway through the second half before UNLV went on a 14-3 run to trim the deficit to 57-48 with 4:23 to play. But the Golden Bears got a 3-point play from Jamal Boykin to extend the lead back to double digits and they limited UNLV to seven points the remainder of the game.

It was their fifth straight win for California under first-year coach Mike Montgomery.

Wink Adams was the lone UNLV (5-1) scorer in double figures with 10 points. Rene Rougeau had a game-high 11 rebounds for UNLV.

Hampton 77, Portland State 71, OT

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Chris Tolson had six points and a steal in overtime and Hampton beat Portland State 77-71 Friday night in the semifinals of the Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout.

Phil Nelson made three free throws and two 3-pointers to get Portland State within one with 19 seconds remaining in regulation, and Kyle Coston hit one of two free throws to tie it at 62.

Tolson’s steal and layup with 2:02 remaining in overtime gave Hampton the lead for good.

Nelson finished with 24 points.


-- CLOSE WINDOW --