Gonzaga-San Diego Preview

3/10/2008 12:52 PM

By NICOLINO DI BENEDETTO
STATS Writer

Gonzaga's only loss to San Diego in the last eight years came the last time they met for the West Coast Conference title at Jenny Craig Pavilion - the Toreros' home arena.

The Bulldogs hope to avoid a repeat of that disappointment exactly five years later on Monday night when they meet the Toreros at the same building, looking for their fifth consecutive league championship.

The 20th-ranked Bulldogs (26-5) are 22-1 against San Diego (20-13) since Feb. 17, 2000. Their only loss to the Toreros, though, was the WCC tournament final on March 10, 2003. Since then, Gonzaga has reeled off 13 wins in a row, including victories in both meetings this season.

Gonzaga also hasn't dropped a league tournament game since then, winning all nine with two coming against San Diego.

The top-seeded Bulldogs will likely need a better performance in order to claim their fifth WCC title in a row and eighth in nine years after they were nearly eliminated in the semifinals by Santa Clara on Sunday. Their biggest lead in the game was only five points and they made just five baskets in the second half, but used clutch free throws to secure a 52-48 win.

"It was a hardened March tournament game and we had to dig down deep to find a way to win," Gonzaga coach Mark Few said.

The victory clinched Gonzaga's 11th consecutive trip to the championship game. The team is 8-2 in the final heading into Monday. It earned a bye into the semifinal round after claiming the regular-season conference crown.

The Bulldogs, who are looking to qualify for the NCAA tournament for the 10th season in a row, hope for another strong performance from Josh Heyvelt. The junior forward, who is averaging 10.3 points on the season, had 15 on 4-for-5 shooting off the bench Sunday - one more point than his total from his previous two games.

He scored seven points and grabbed six rebounds in 13 minutes of a 59-55 win at San Diego on Feb. 18 after scoring 15 in each of the previous two matchups as a starter.

The third-seeded Toreros, who haven't returned to the NCAA tournament since 2003, are hoping Brandon Johnson can help them carry some momentum into the final after he scored a career-high 28 points to help them rally from a 17-point first-half deficit and beat Saint Mary's 75-69 in double overtime on Sunday.

Johnson's outstanding performance came after he scored 17 on 6-for-10 shooting in Saturday's 73-55 win over Pepperdine in the quarterfinals. He's averaging 22.8 points during San Diego's four-game winning streak, increasing his team-high season average to 17.2.

The junior guard was impressive against Gonzaga on Jan. 19, making 10 of 19 shots for 26 points in an 80-70 loss. However, he was not nearly as effective a month later, going 2-for-15 for eight points.

Gyno Pomare also struggled in that meeting, making 1 of 5 shots and both of his free throws for four points. The junior forward is coming off a 22-point, 12-rebound performance Sunday - his seventh double-double of the season.