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Many West Coast Conference aficionados expected this 2026 championship game to be yet another duel between the Gonzaga Bulldogs and Saint Mary’s Gaels. Coach Herb Sendek and his Santa Clara Broncos proved to be just as worthy a competitor to coach Randy Bennett’s group in this competitive three-bid NCAA Tournament league on the mid-major level.
For me personally, this was my third time being a part of the festivities at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. It was definitely the loudest and most filled I’ve ever heard from the Gonzaga faithful, in-person and watching on television.
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The ‘Kennel South’ didn’t let off the gas pedal on their school’s way to winning the West Coast Conference Tournament title for the 23rd time since 1995.
The Wi-Fi connection was terribly bad in the building, but it was clear early on just how evenly-matched these two programs were in the first half. It was some sloppy execution from the Zags to start, with the offense struggling to get in any sort of groove.
In that sixth-man role of his, Broncos’ redshirt freshman forward Allen Graves (11 points on 4-for-7 field goals/2-for-5 three-pointers, game-high nine rebounds, three assists/two turnovers) has shown how capable he is of playing at the next level. Not only in his efforts on the defensive end with the two steals or keeping possessions alive on the offensive glass, but also with his ability to catch-and-shoot outside of the perimeter. He’s much more of a wing defender whenever he decides to enter his name in the NBA Draft.
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Sendek has put his true faith in redshirt sophomore guard Christian Hammond (game-high 24 points on 9-for-16 field goals/2-for-4 three-pointers/4-for-5 free throws) from way back at the start of the season in November. He seemed to always have an answer to a potential opposing run in the first half of the entertaining Tuesday night finale in the desert.
The main reason that Gonzaga was trailing 33-29 at the half was due to the lack…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/davis-fogle-second-half-contributions-063423158.html
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Publish date : 2026-03-11 06:34:00
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