Vol's Loften Is Pulled, Despite 82-72 Victory

When your leader is shutdown, it can be awfully difficult to overcome. Gonzaga (9-4) dropped their second straight game and three of their last five following an 82-72 route against Tennessee.. After Pargo's brilliant play against a competitive Oklahoma team (who beat top 25 foe West Virginia on the same day), but only coverted on 1-for-7 from the field, finishing with a dismal eight points. JaJuan Smith is credited with the effort. Smith stated that a summer camp game played this past summer revealed a few of Pargo's weaknesses thus putting himself at an advantage. The Zags trailed by as much as 18 during one point, but were reluctant to cut the deficit to five after a Matt Bouldin 3-pointer with 1:15 remaining. Bouldin was the Bulldogs leading scorer with 21 points. Tennessee's Chris Loften was pulled from the game after missing his seven of eight 3-pointers. He finished the game with 13 points, shooting 4-13 from the field.

Tennesse (No.11 AP, 12-1) will host No.24 Mississippi in Knoxville on January 9. They've won seven straight since dropping a 97-78 contest against Texas. Meanwhile, Gonzaga will stay in Washington for games against Utah on the 31st and Georgia on January 5th before settling into conference games at LMU and Pepperdine.

Gonzaga Halts To The Sooners Despite Pargo's Big Game

In a game that was tight the whole way, Pargo's career high 28 points came up just short in a Thursday night loss to the Sooners (9-3) in Oklahoma City. Gonzaga (9-3) lead late in the second half driven by a 12-5 run in which Pargo connected on five straight shots scoring all 12 points for the Zags during the run, but when his 3-point airball from the right wing was followed by a hook shot in the paint from 6-11 center Longar Longar, who finished with 16 points, it put Oklahoma ahead 67-66. With under a minute and a half to play, the Sooners free-throws ultimately put the nails in the coffin for the Bulldogs.



It was power forward Josh Heytvelt's first game back after serving a nine game suspension for possession of drugs. He had five points in 15 minutes.

Gonzaga will host No. 7 Tennessee on December 29th in Spokane. The Volunteers are 10-1 after an 86-73 victory over North Carolina-Asheville.

#18 Zags Anticipate Tough Four Game Stretch

The 18th ranked Gonzaga Bulldog's are looking at four challenging tasks this Christmas break with contests at Oklahoma, 12th ranked Tennessee, Utah, and finish up on January 5th against Georgia. Gonzaga's schedule thus far is further than modest; beating UConn 85-82 on a neutral court, Saint Joseph's in Philadelphia 65-60, and losing to the Cougars of WSU 51-47 on December 5th. After back-to-back wins at home against Cal State Northridge and Northern Colorado, it leaves the Zags with an 8-2 record. They currently have five players averaging in double-figures (nearly six, David Pendergraft 9 pts, 5 reb) with sophmore Matt Bouldin leading the way with 13 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 assists a game.

The push towards March reveals to be a promising one with an addition like Josh Heytvelt, who was busted for psilocybin, an active hallucingenic mushroom back in Febuary earlier this year. Heytvelt's, 6-11, 238-pound body averaged 15.5 and 7.1 nearing the NCAA tourament, so his presence on the court will be comforting for all Bulldog fans.

The team has reunited and have played closer together. They've put the struggles behind them and are ready to redeem themselves after a first-round defeat in last years tournament to Indiana. It will be no cake walk, but with a high-powered offense like they have, the only question remaining will be, "Are they ready to take the next step?"