SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — Drew Timme scored 25 points as top-ranked Gonzaga dominated Bellarmine 92-50 on Friday night, extending the nation’s longest home winning streak to 55 games.
Julian Strawther added 19 points for Gonzaga (4-0), which has not lost at home since 2018.
Dylan Penn scored 14 points for Bellarmine (0-4), a member of the Atlantic Sun Conference in its second season of Division I basketball. Bellarmine was hurt by 40% shooting and 18 turnovers.
Freshman center Chet Holmgren had 18 points on 8-of-10 shooting for Gonzaga, plus five rebounds and five assists.
Bellarmine took an early 8-5 lead, but Gonzaga replied with a 15-3 run that included three 3-pointers by Strawther to take a 20-11 lead. Gonzaga poured it on and an alley-oop dunk by Holmgren lifted the Bulldogs to a 34-17 lead.
Gonzaga led 48-28 at halftime, shooting 57% in the first half and sank six 3-pointers.
Holmgren's second alley-oop of the game lifted Gonzaga to a 62-37 lead early in the second half, and the Knights seemed to fall apart after that.
BIG PICTURE
Bellarmine: Nobody said Division I is easy. The Knights lost at No. 6 Purdue in the season opener, and their next game is against No. 2 UCLA. ... Bellarmine, based in Louisville, Kentucky, was third in the nation last year in field-goal percentage at 50.8%, but is shooting only 44% this season.
Gonzaga: The Zags concluded a four-game home stand by pounding an undersized foe. ... Timme was named the West Coast Conference player of the week on Monday, while Holmgren was the conference freshman of the week ... Gonzaga has achieved a No. 1 ranking in six of the past 10 seasons. ... Gonzaga is 240-15 in the McCarthey Athletic Center since it opened in 2004.
UP NEXT
Bellarmine: Faces No. 2 UCLA at the Empire Classic in Las Vegas on Monday.
Gonzaga: Heads to Las Vegas to take on Central Michigan (Monday), No. 2 UCLA (Wednesday) and No. 7 Duke (Nov. 27).
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