Gonzaga Marches On To Elite Eight After Holding Off Noles Late Surge

Written by Luis Rodriguez

ANAHEIM, CA – The top seed in the West Region, Gonzaga punched their ticket to the Elite Eight on Thursday afternoon after holding off a late comeback attempt by the Florida State Seminoles for a 72-58 win.

FSU scored the first basket of the game, but their celebration would be short lived as Gonzaga quickly took the lead 2:29 into the game, and would never relinquish it. The Noles kept things close early, but with 6:15 left in the 1^st half, the Bulldogs had pulled out to a 10-point lead. The Zags shot 41% from the floor and 100% from the 3-point line in the 1^st half to give them a 38-27 lead going into the halftime. FSU struggled to take care of the ball as they had nine turnovers before the break.

The start of the 2^nd half was much of the same, with the Zags eventually pushing their lead to 13 with 12:14 left to play. The Seminoles, however, weren’t don for the count. They went on a 14-5 run to cut it to just a 4 point game with 4:11 left to play. The energy exumed to build that comeback however, seemed to be all the Seminoles had in the tank.

FSU would only score tow points the rest of the game as the Zags closed it out with a 12-2 run.

Rui Hachimura led the Bulldogs with 17 points, while Zach Norvell Jr. and Josh Perkins helped by scoring 14 points each. Brandon Clarke added a double-double with 15 points and 12 rebounds for the Zags. Trent Forest was the leading scorer for the Seminoles  with 20 points, the only Nole with double figures in points.

Both teams ended the game with 14 turnovers, but Gonzaga’s defense maintained strong to defeat FSU 72-58. The Bulldogs are taking their talents to the Elite Eight for the second time in three seasons. They will either be playing with No. 2 Michigan or No.3 Texas Tech on Saturday