Zags Roll in WCC opener, 87-70

In a game that typefied two teams moving in opposite directions, Gonzaga rolled past Pepperdine Thursday night in the West Coast Conference opener for both teams. Corey Violette scored 20 points and grabbed nine rebounds, and Blake Stepp added 19 points for the 17th-ranked Zags.

Uncertainty always abounds in a conference opener. For a team that has lost its way, there is still an opportunity to turn things around, still a chance to rescue a season gone strangely awry; for a team that may be on the verge of greatness, there is still a lot to prove and a series of important challenges ahead. That uncertainty abounded in Firestone Fieldhouse as Pepperdine and Gonzaga prepared for their first conference battle of the season.

But there would be no shocking upset, no season-altering defining moments on this night. Gonzaga (11-2, 1-0 WCC) built a double-digit lead in the first half and quelled several rallies in the second, sending the reeling Waves (5-11, 0-1) to their fifth straight loss.

Glen McGowan paced the Waves with 20 points, and Shaun Davis was solid with 16 points, six assists, five rebounds, and no turnovers.

But the Waves' two top gunners, Alex Acker and Terrance Johnson, combined to shoot just 8-32 as Pepperdine was never able to string together a hot streak long enough to get the deficit under 10.

Pepperdine shot 1-11 in the first six minutes of the game and found themselves facing a deficit early. Violette went to the bench, and suddenly the Waves made six of their next eight shots. But Violette's return with eight minutes to play in the half restored order.

Stepp and Gonzaga did what they do best in the second half: whatever's needed to stay on top. Stepp hit several momentum-killing three-pointers, aided by two spectacular blocks by Ronny Turiaf and the relentless board work of the Zags' big men.

The Zags outrebounded the Waves 41-21, although the statistic is not all that surprising for a game in which the Waves missed 44 shots and the Zags missed just 19.

NOTE:

Pepperdine's Saturday date with Portland is in some jeopardy. Portland's game at Loyola Marymount scheduled for Thursday was postponed when the team was unable to leave the Portland area due to a snow and ice storm that has grounded flights out of the city for several days. The Portland-LMU clash has been rescheduled for Monday, assuming the Pilots (literal and figurative) can fly by then.