The Gonzaga Bulldogs came into Saturday’s road tilt against the Kentucky Wildcats in dire need of a marquee victory – and for first time all season long they got it done.
Mark Few’s team picked up their first Quad 1 win of the year, 89-85, over John Calipari’s team at Rupp Arena thanks to a monster night from the frontcourt, led by 23 points and five rebounds from Graham Ike.
Gonzaga is in a rare spot where they are not the favorite to win the WCC Championship and – if they don’t – might not have the resume to secure an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament. If that were to happen, it would end a streak that dates back to 1998, one year before Few took over as head coach.
The decision to schedule this premier non-conference game in February paid off in a massive way for the Zags, as it gave them a huge momentum building victory and memorable performance a month before the Selection Sunday committee makes their decision.
The story is not as happy for Kentucky, who have now lost three of their last four games. They struggled on both ends of the floor in the first half, getting into a 12 point hole and never fully recovering – despite an insane effort from freshman guard Reed Sheppard, who had 21 points in the second half and kept the ‘Cats in this one until the final buzzer.
Gonzaga (18-6) now has five days off until they take on LMU on Thursday, February 15, while Kentucky hosts Ole Miss on Tuesday at 9:00 PM ET on ESPN.