SPOKANE — Matt Bouldin scored a game-high 22 points, including four 3-pointers, to lead Gonzaga to a 92-74 victory over Mississippi Valley State on Saturday night.
Four Bulldogs players scored in double-figures. Freshman Elias Harris scored 18, Robert Sacre had 17 and Steven Gray added 16.
"He (Bouldin) was able to hit some 3s that got us going and distributed the ball well," Bulldogs coach Mark Few said.
Gonzaga (1-0) showed no signs of looking past MVSU toward its next contest at No. 2 Michigan State on Tuesday. The Bulldogs led by as many as 26 points in the second half.
The Delta Devils (0-2) were led by Jason Holmes with 12 points. Michael Mayo, D'Angelo Jackson and Shannon Behling added 10 points apiece for Mississippi Valley State.
The Bulldogs jumped out to an early 15-5 lead but MVSU responded with a 10-2 run to pull within two. That's as close as the Delta Devils would get. The Bulldogs led by as many as 23-points in the first half. They allowed only five field-goals in the last 10 minutes and led 45-30 at the break.
Sacre and Harris dominated the inside, helping the Bulldogs outrebound MSVU 43-28.
"(Harris) has been playing very well for us," Few said. "That's why we brought him in here. I've been really pleased with how he and Rob (Sacre) have been playing inside."
Gonzaga lost four starters from a year ago, including Austin Daye, a first-round NBA draft pick. Bouldin is one of the few returning players and is joined by 10 teammates who have never played college basketball.
"This is a young team, and they are going to go through stretches where they play well," Few said. "They are also go through some stretches where they probably aren't going to play well."
Posted in Sports on Sunday, November 15, 2009 12:00 am
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