PORTLAND, Ore. – No. 15 Gonzaga buried eight first half three-pointers to jump out to an early double digit lead and cruised to a 95-79 victory over the Portland Pilots in West Coast Conference men's basketball action before 4,557 fans at the Chiles Center on Thursday night.
The win completes a sweep of the season series for the Bulldogs (18-4, 8-1 WCC), while the Pilots (8-14, 2-7) will have a quick turnaround before facing another ranked team, No. 16 Saint Mary's, on the road Saturday night.
Sophomore Killian Tillie matched a career-high with 27 points for Gonzaga, while freshman Corey Kispert recorded season-highs 23 points and 10 rebounds off the bench.
Freshman guard Marcus Shaver Jr. led the Pilots with 16 points, while senior D'Marques Tyson chipped in 15 points and freshman Malcolm Porter added 11 off the bench.
The Bulldogs dominated the interior with a 40-25 rebounding edge, 40-18 points in the paint advantage and 19-3 margin in second chance points.
Gonzaga shot 55 percent from the field and made 11-of-28 three-pointers. The Pilots finished at 44 percent overall and 7-of-18 from beyond the arc.
Tillie scored 13 first half points as Gonzaga raced to a double-digit lead midway through the period and led by as much as 18 before taking a 46-30 lead into halftime. The lead blossomed to as much as 28 points in the second half as Kispert and Tillie combined for 30 after the break.
Shaver Jr. continued his consistent scoring output by finishing 5-of-11 from the field, 2-for-3 from three-point range and draining all four free throws. He is leading the Pilots in scoring during WCC play at 11.3 points per game.
The Pilots will travel to Moraga, Calif. tomorrow and take on No. 16 Saint Mary's Saturday night at 8 p.m. The game will be televised in the Portland market on ROOT Sports Northwest, while radio coverage begins at 7:30 p.m. on 910 ESPN-Portland.