The Gonzaga Bulldogs (10-4, 2-0 WCC) return home following their California road trip for a matchup against the Portland Pilots (5-10, 0-2 WCC) in the second annual Community Cancer Fund Classic from the Spokane Arena. Tip-off is set for Thursday at 6 p.m. PT/9 p.m. ET.
The Zags enter the matchup coming off a hard-fought victory over Pepperdine in the West Coast Conference opener in Malibu, California, on Monday. Braden Huff helped fuel the offense early on with 17 points in the first half, though the Waves roared back from down 20 points to make it a 4-point game with 2 minutes and change remaining in regulation. Khalif Battle secured the 89-82 win at the charity stripe, as the 6-foot-5 guard finished the night with a team-high 21 points.
Upon beating Pepperdine for a 48th time in a row, Gonzaga looks to extend another lengthy head-to-head win streak when it hosts Portland, which hasn’t beaten Mark Few and company since the 2013-14 season (45 games).
The Pilots dropped their first two league games to Washington State (89-73) and Oregon State (89-79). Max Mackinnon led the way in scoring against the Cougars with 22 points on 9-for-15 from the field, while 6-foot-10 freshman Austin Rapp dropped 17 points, six rebounds, four assists and three blocks in 34 minutes. Rapp followed that up with 22 points and six boards in the loss to the Beavers.
Rapp, a 6-foot-10 Australian freshman, paces his team at 14.4 points per game while knocking down 41.1% of his 3-point attempts. Vukasin Masic does a little bit of everything, as the 6-foot-5 redshirt senior chips in 10.2 points, 3.4 assists and 3.3 rebounds per contest. Elon transfer Max Mackinnon adds 10.1 points and 4.7 boards per game.
For the Bulldogs, Graham Ike leads a well-balanced offensive attack that ranks fourth in the country in adjusted offensive efficiency and No. 11 in scoring at 87.3 points per game.
Here’s more on how to watch the Zags battle the Pilots.
HOW TO WATCH GONZAGA VS. PORTLAND
Who: Gonzaga and Portland square off in a WCC clash
When: 6 p.m. PT/9 p.m. ET | Thursday, Jan. 2
Where: Spokane Arena
TV: ESPN+ (out of region) KHQ/SWX (regional)* FOX13+ (Seattle) FOX12+ (Portland)
KenPom’s projection: Gonzaga 96, Portland 64
*Spokane, Yakima, Tri-Cities, Eastern Washington, Coeur d’Alene and North Idaho, Missoula, Great Falls, Butte, Bozeman and Helena will experience blackouts on KHQ/SWX broadcasts. Fans in these areas can watch at swxlocalsports.com.
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