TOP 25/PAC-12/BIG SKY: Karnowski pumps in 18 to lead Gonzaga

SPOKANE - Basketball is considered a game of speed. For center Przemek Karnowski of No. 6 Gonzaga, the key to his success this season has been slowing his game down.

Karnowski scored 18 points and grabbed nine rebounds as Gonzaga beat Santa Clara 79-57 on Saturday.

"I'm trying to be more patient on the block when I get the ball," said Karnowski, who sank 8-of-10 shots. "I look for open guys, and if they are not there I make my move."

Coach Mark Few agreed that the more deliberate play of the 7-foot-1 Karnowski has led to a great run in recent games.

"It's good to see him slowing down," Few said. "He's a smart kid and a good player. He's a force."

Karnowski dominated the inside against the smaller Broncos, who had no answer on his moves to the basket.

Five Gonzaga players scored in double figures: Kyle Wiltjer had 16 points, Kevin Pangos 13, and Domantas Sabonis and Byron Wesley had 11 each for Gonzaga (16-1, 5-0 West Coast), which has won nine straight.

"We were crazy efficient on offense," Few said of the Zags, who shot 65 percent in the first half and 53 percent for the game. They scored 44 points in the paint.

Matt Hubbard scored 15 points and Sam Brownridge 14 for cold-shooting Santa Clara (7-10, 2-4).

"They are going to have a size advantage over anyone in the whole country," Santa Clara coach Kerry Keating said of Gonzaga. "You have to pick your poison with those guys."

Santa Clara has had trouble scoring in all six of its WCC games, Keating said.

"We are not putting the ball up very well," Keating said. "We need to get better down the stretch.

Santa Clara shot just 40 percent in the first half, and trailed 44-31 at halftime. They shot only 29 percent in the second half.

Keating noted that Gonzaga scored 19 points off turnovers, while the Broncos had only four.

"That's the difference in the game," Keating said.

Gonzaga has won 34 straight home games, second-longest streak in the nation after Duke's 41-game run. They have beaten the Broncos nine consecutive times since 2011.

Karnowski, who had a 7-inch height advantage over defender Nate Kratch, had his way inside.

Gonzaga dominated the boards 41-26.

Gonzaga made nine of its first 13 shots, most from inside the paint, in jumping to a 21-13 lead. Hubbard hit a pair of 3-pointers to keep the Broncos within striking range.

SANTA CLARA (7-10)

Hubbard 5-10 0-0 15, Kratch 1-4 2-3 4, Clark 2-9 0-0 4, Johnson 3-9 2-2 10, Brownridge 5-11 3-3 14, Edwards 0-0 0-0 0, Wardlow 0-1 0-0 0, Pugh 0-1 0-0 0, Richard 1-5 0-0 3, Healy 0-0 0-0 0, Romeo 0-0 1-2 1, Ndumanya 2-4 2-4 6. Totals 19-54 10-14 57.

GONZAGA (16-1)

Wiltjer 6-12 3-4 16, Karnowski 8-10 2-2 18, Pangos 3-6 5-5 13, Bell Jr. 1-6 0-0 3, Wesley 5-12 1-1 11, Melson 3-5 0-0 7, Nunez 0-0 0-0 0, Dranginis 0-0 0-0 0, Sabonis 5-7 1-3 11, Griffin 0-0 0-0 0, Triano 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 31-58 12-15 79.

Halftime-Gonzaga 44-31. 3-Point Goals-Santa Clara 9-20 (Hubbard 5-9, Johnson 2-4, Brownridge 1-2, Richard 1-3, Clark 0-2), Gonzaga 5-11 (Pangos 2-4, Wiltjer 1-1, Melson 1-2, Bell Jr. 1-4). Fouled Out-None. Rebounds-Santa Clara 26 (Clark 7), Gonzaga 41 (Karnowski, Sabonis 9). Assists-Santa Clara 11 (Brownridge, Clark 3), Gonzaga 16 (Pangos 4). Total Fouls-Santa Clara 16, Gonzaga 15. A-6,000.

No. 1 Kentucky 70, Texas A&M 64 - At College Station, Texas, Tyler Ulis put No. 1 Kentucky ahead with a 3-pointer deep in double overtime and the Wildcats stayed unbeaten.

NO. 18 NORTH CAROLINA 72, NO. 5 LOUISVILLE 71 - At Chapel Hill, N.C., Marcus Paige hit a scooping layup with 8.5 seconds left to help North Carolina rally to beat Louisville.

NO. 3 VIRGINIA 62, NO. 13 NOTRE DAME 56 - At South Bend, Ind., Darion Atkins scored 14 points, Malcolm Brogdon and Justin Anderson hit key baskets in the final 4 minutes and Virginia outscored Notre Dame 9-3 down the stretch.

NO. 8 VILLANOVA 81, DEPAUL 64 - At Villanova, Pa., Darrun Hilliard scored 21 points, Ryan Arcidiacono added 14 and Villanova halted DePaul's quick Big East start.

OKLAHOMA STATE 69, NO. 10 TEXAS 58 - At Stillwater, Okla., Le'Bryan Nash and Phil Forte each scored 20 points and Oklahoma State stopped Texas.

NO. 11 MARYLAND 69, PURDUE 60 - At West LaFayette, Ind., Jake Layman scored 14 points and Maryland bounced back from a loss to beat Purdue.

NO. 12 KANSAS 86, TEXAS TECH 54 - At Lawrence, Kan., Perry Ellis scored 15 points, Kelly Oubre Jr. added 14 and Kansas remained perfect at home against Texas Tech.

NO. 17 IOWA STATE 74, NO. 14 WEST VIRGINIA 72 - At Morgantown, W.Va., Abdel Nader scored 19 points to lead Iowa State past West Virginia.

KANSAS STATE 66, NO. 16 OKLAHOMA 63 (OT) - At Norman, Okla., Marcus Foster forced overtime with a floater, and hit a 3-pointer with 4 seconds left in the extra period to lift Kansas State past Oklahoma.

NO. 19 SETON HALL 68, CREIGHTON 67 - At Omaha, Neb., Sterling Gibbs made a 3-pointer with 2.1 seconds left to lift Seton Hall past Creighton.

NO. 20 VCU 89, SAINT JOSEPH'S 74 - At Richmond, Va., Melvin Johnson scored 20 points and VCU beat Saint Joseph's to extend its winning streak to eight games.

NO. 21 BAYLOR 66, TCU 59, OT - At Fort Worth, Texas, Rico Gathers had 17 points and 18 rebounds to lead Baylor to its first Big 12 Conference win of the season.

INDIANA 69, NO. 22 OHIO STATE 66 - At Bloomington, Ind., Troy Williams had 15 points and 12 rebounds, and Indiana held off Ohio State.

NO. 23 ARKANSAS 82, VANDERBILT 70 - At Fayetteville, Ark., Bobby Portis had a season-high 32 points and Arkansas beat Vanderbilt to improve to 2-0 in the Southeastern Conference for the first time since the 2007-08 season.

WESTERN KENTUCKY 72, NO. 25 OLD DOMINION 65 - At Bowling Green, Ky., George Fant had 24 points and 13 rebounds for Western Kentucky.

Oregon 59, Arizona State 56 - At Eugene, Ore., Joseph Young scored 16 points and Elgin Cook hit two clinching free throws with 9.3 seconds left to give Oregon a 59-56 victory over Arizona State on Saturday.

Weber State 65, Montana State 62 - At Ogden, Utah, Joel Bolomboy posted a double-double, scoring 17 points with 11 rebounds as Weber State beat Montana State 65-62 on Saturday night.

Northern Colorado 84, Sacramento State 73 - At Greeley, Colo., Tevin Svihovec scored 26 points and Northern Colorado bounced back from a halftime deficit to beat Sacramento State.

N. Arizona 70, S Utah 67 - At Flagstaff, Ariz., Aaseem Dixon hit four 3-pointers and finished with 22 points as Northern Arizona held on to defeat Southern Utah.

Portland St 82, N Dakota 75 - At Grind Forks, N.D., Braxton Tucker scored 20 points Saturday and Portland State held off a second-half surge by North Dakota to win 82-75, snapping a two-game losing streak and ending a five-game road skid.

Montana 90, Idaho St 64 - At Pocatello, Colfax High graduate Brandon Gfeller set career-highs by scoring 23 points and hitting seven 3-pointers to lead Montana over Idaho State.