SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) Corey Kispert scored 17 points, Joel Ayayi added 16 and No. 9 Gonzaga beat Texas Southern 101-62 on Wednesday night, rebounding from a loss to Michigan in the Battle 4 Atlantis title game.
Seven players scored in double figures for Gonzaga (9-1). The Zags have 28 consecutive home wins, second-longest streak in the nation after Tennessee’s 30.
Tyrik Armstrong scored 15 points for Texas Southern (2-6), which is playing a difficult nonconference schedule. Yahuza Ross added nine.
Gonzaga made 12 of its first 15 shots to jump to a 25-15 lead.
Texas Southern scored three straight baskets to get to 25-21.
But Gonzaga replied with a 28-9 run to push its lead to 53-30 at halftime.
Gonzaga shot 61% in the first half, while the Tigers shot just 37.8% and made just one of 11 from 3-point range.
Gonzaga scored the first nine points of the second half for a 62-30 lead.
Kispert’s 3-pointer gave Gonzaga an 82-46 lead with just under eight minutes left in the game.
BIG PICTURE
Texas Southern: The Tigers were picked to finish second in the Southwestern Athletic Conference. Their defense came in yielding 79.9 points per game. They have lost to Gonzaga each of the previous two years.
Gonzaga: The Bulldogs have five players banged up, and were seeking to rebound from an 82-64 loss to Michigan last Friday that was their most lopsided since 2014. They are 14-0 all-time against SWAC teams.
UP NEXT
Texas Southern hosts Concordia on Saturday.
Gonzaga plays at No. 22 Washington on Sunday, followed by a game at No. 12 Arizona on Dec. 14 before returning home to face No. 7 North Carolina on Dec. 18.
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