SPOKANE — Zach Norvell Jr. scored 25 points, Rui Hachimura added 23 points and 10 rebounds and No. 2 Gonzaga beat BYU 102-68 on Saturday night, clearing the way for the Bulldogs to possibly be ranked No. 1 on Monday.
Josh Perkins had 21 points and seven assists for Gonzaga (27-2, 14-0). The Bulldogs have won 18 in a row, the longest streak in the nation, and have clinched the West Coast Conference regular-season title.
Yoeli Childs and TJ Haws each had18 points for BYU (18-12, 10-5). The Cougars have lost two straight.
Gonzaga seeks to replace Duke at No. 1 on Monday, after the Blue Devils lost to No. 8 North Carolina on Wednesday before rebounding win at Syracuse earlier Saturday.
The Bulldogs won their seventh consecutive league title and will be the top seed at the conference tournament in Las Vegas in early March.
Gonzaga made 10 of its first 13 shots to jump to a 23-15 lead.
After BYU closed to 31-26, Norvell scored eight of Gonzaga’s next 10 points to push the lead to 41-28.
Gonzaga led 51-38 at halftime behind 18 points from Norvell and 57 percent shooting.
Perkins hit a 3-pointer to put Gonzaga up 58-44 early in the second.
BYU couldn’t cut that lead to single digits, in part because leading scorer Childs picked up his third and fourth fouls early in the second.
A 9-0 run lifted Gonzaga to a 73-53 lead with 10 minutes left.
The Cougars suffered through a 1-for-13 drought and Gonzaga extended the lead to 87-56 with just over five minutes left, capping a 23-3 run.
BIG PICTURE
BYU: Childs averages 21 points and Haws 17.8. … BYU is seeking its first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2015. … Childs, Haws and Nick Emery all have more than 1,000 career points.
Gonzaga: Gonzaga leads the nation in scoring at 90.3 points per game … The Bulldogs are outscoring WCC opponents by an average of 28 points.
UP NEXT
Gonzaga plays at Pacific on Thursday night and finishes the regular season Saturday night at Saint Mary’s. The Bulldogs are trying to go undefeated in the league for the first time since 2013.
