Gonzaga Holds on to Beat No. 17 Kentucky on the Road
In a near must-win game for Gonzaga in their pursuit of a 25th straight NCAA Tournament appearance, the Zags were able to squeak out a victory in Lexington against the Kentucky Wildcats by a score of 89-85. The Zags maintained control of the game through the first half, leading by 10 at the break in large part to guard Nolan Hickman’s 11 first-half points. Out of the intermission, Kentucky came out firing, closing the lead quickly and taking a lead just six and a half minutes into the second half. The game was back and forth the remainder of the way, with Gonzaga hitting their free throws late to secure the road win.
The experience gap was apparent in this game, especially in the first half where Gonzaga’s length and pace were giving Kentucky fits on the offensive end. Senior transfer Graham Ike finished as the leading scorer for the Zags with 23 points in just 24 minutes, as he was battling through foul trouble the entire game before fouling out with a minute remaining. Fellow senior forward Anton Watson filled up the stat sheet with 17 points, seven rebounds, and five assists, while juniors Ben Gregg and the aforementioned Hickman contributed 14 and 17, respectively. For Kentucky, freshman standout Reed Sheppard kept the Wildcats in the game with 21 points despite not making a three-pointer. Veteran of the team Antonio Reeves put in 17 points, while sophomore guard Adou Thiero chipped in 15 points of his own.
The Zags secure a much-needed quad 1 win to boost their resume in a weaker WCC. They will need to continue to stack up wins and may need to win the conference tournament to earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. They will have a stretch of three favorable matchups before facing off against Saint Mary’s, the conference leaders at a perfect 10-0 so far in conference play. Kentucky will inevitably drop a few slots in the Top 25 ranking but appears to still be firmly in the tournament field. Their next matchup will be at home against Ole Miss before traveling to Auburn in a game that will have large implications for the SEC standings.
