Ben Gregg scored a game-high 24 points as No. 3 Gonzaga took control in the first half and went ahead in the second to beat Davidson 90-65 in the fifth-place game of the Battle 4 Atlantis Friday in Paradise Island, Bahamas.
The Bulldogs (7-1) earned their sixth double-digit win of the season and followed that up with an impressive 89-73 victory over No. 14 Indiana and another solid performance.
Gregg surpassed his previous career high of 22 sets against San Diego on Jan. 6. He made 8 of 10 shots, all seven of his free throw attempts and grabbed eight rebounds as Gonzaga shot 54.7 percent and scored 58 points in the paint.
Graham Ike added a double-double with 18 and 10 rebounds while Braden Huff contributed 14 points as Gonzaga weathered a night from leading scorer Khalif Battle. Battle was held to four points on 1-of-7 from the field but the Bulldogs had more than enough, including 14 assists from Ryan Nembhard.
Reed Bailey scored 19 and Roberts Blum added 11 for Davidson (5-2), which was blown out for the second time in the event after a 33-point loss to No. 24 in Arizona in the opening round. The Wildcats also got quiet games from Connor Kochera and Bobby Durkin, who combined for 15 points on 5-of-17 shooting after a stellar performance in Thursday’s win over Providence.
Gonzaga took a 28-18 lead when Nembhard found Huff in the lane for a hook shot with 7:51 left as part of an 8-0 run. Nembhard’s three-point play made it 33-19 with 7:08 left, Gregg’s trey made it 36-21 with 5:23 left and the Bulldogs led 42-31 at halftime.
Gonzaga scored nine points in the second half and opened up a 51-31 lead with Ike’s layup with 16:41 left. Nolan Hickman’s 3-pointer extended the lead to 60-37 with 13:24 left and Gregg’s three-point play opened a 65-38 margin about two minutes later.
–Field Level Media
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