SEATTLE — Kelly Olynyk dominated inside with 20 points and No. 14 Gonzaga rebounded from its first loss of the season with an impressive 68-52 win over Kansas State on Saturday night.
Making their annual trip to Seattle, Olynyk and the Bulldogs (10-1) controlled the interior and wore down the Wildcats in the second half. Olynyk’s highlight was a rattling, one-handed slam with about 9 minutes left that drew a technical foul for screaming, but also gave the Bulldogs a 14-point lead.
Gonzaga outscored Kansas State 38-12 in the paint.
Angel Rodriguez led Kansas State (7-2) with 14 points, but leading scorer Rodney McGruder had a miserable night. McGruder didn’t score for the first 30 minutes and finished with four points.
McGruder, who came in averaging 12.9 points, shot 1 for 9 from the floor.
Gary Bell Jr. had 11 points for Gonzaga, which played before its extensive fan base in the Puget Sound region for the 10th straight year and improved to 6-4 in the event. It was a chance for the Bulldogs to erase the disappointment of their last outing a week earlier when defensive lapses and a red-hot Brandon Paul keyed Illinois’ 85-74 upset that snapped the best start to a season in Gonzaga history.
There was no lingering hangover from the Illinois loss. Olynyk made 10 of 13 shots, falling just short of matching his career high of 22 points when he fouled out with 4:56 left. Even more impressive for Gonzaga was its domination inside without getting a big game from Elias Harris, who finished with 10 points and seven rebounds.
Kansas State was trying to pick up an early signature win in Bruce Weber’s first season coaching the Wildcats. They fell short in their first attempt when they lost to then-No. 4 Michigan 71-57 last month.
OREGON 60, NEBRASKA 38 — Oregon center Tony Woods scored 14 points and the Ducks overcame a sluggish performance on offense to defeat Nebraska 60-38 on Saturday.
Forward Arsalan Kazemi also had 10 points and a season-high 17 rebounds for the Ducks (9-1), who improved to 8-0 at home this season.
E.J. Singler also scored 13 for Oregon, which was held 19.4 points below its season average, including a season-low point total in the first half, though the Ducks still led 27-18 at the break.
The Ducks also missed on their first 11 3-point attempts before Singler made a pair in the final seven minutes of the game.
Oregon had 16 turnovers, including 10 in the first half.
Women
WASHINGTON STATE 62, No. 20 OHIO STATE 55 — Lia Galdeira scored 13 of her 15 points in the second half to help Washington State upset No. 20 Ohio State 62-55 on Saturday.
Washington State’s defense forced 21 Ohio State turnovers — leading to 16 Cougars points — and held the Buckeyes to 1 for 17 from 3-point range.
“Exciting day for Washington State, after a tough road trip and back-to-back losses, the girls responded and came out and played physical, and aggressive,” Cougars coach June Daugherty said. “Tonight we had some hustle plays that really mattered I give all the credit to our defense.”
Washington State (3-5) led 28-23 at halftime. Ohio State came back to lead 36-32, but the Cougars’ defense forced three straight turnovers. Taylor Edmondson’s 3-pointer put the Cougars ahead to stay at 40-37.
UC SANTA BARBARA 54, WASHINGTON 46 — Sweets Underwood had 15 points and 13 rebounds to lead UC Santa Barbara to a 54-46 win over Washington on Saturday.
In addition to her double-double, Underwood was 6 of 11 from the field and had three assists and a steal. Nicole Nesbit had 14 points and Destini Mason had 10 rebounds.
The Gauchos (4-5) led throughout the game with a score of 27-17 at halftime.
