Nolan Hickman led a balanced attack with 17 points as No. 6 Gonzaga trounced No. 8 Baylor 101-63 Monday night in the season opener for both teams in Spokane, Wash.
It was the Bulldogs’ biggest margin of victory against a Top 10 team, surpassing their previous mark of 20 points.
Graham Ike added 15 points and eight rebounds for Gonzaga in the rematch of the 2021 NCAA title game that the Bears won 86-70. Braden Huff scored 14, Khalif Battle added 12 and Dusty Stromer had 11 for the Bulldogs. Ryan Nembhard dished out a game-high 11 assists.
Miami transfer Norchad Omier led Baylor with 15 points and nine rebounds. Robert O. Wright III added 12 points and Josh Ojianwuna chipped in 10 points.
Prized Baylor freshman VJ Edgecombe had just four points on 2-for-11 shooting from the field. The five-star guard’s second basket was a dunk over Gonzaga’s Joe Few, the son of coach Mark Few, with 1:41 remaining.
The Bulldogs shot 40 of 70 from the field (57.1 percent), including 13 of 31 (41.9 percent) from 3-point range. The Bears shot just 23 of 62 (37.1 percent) and were 3 for 21 (14.3 percent) from beyond the arc.
After leading 49-30 at the intermission, the Bulldogs scored the first six points of the second half to extend their lead to 25.
The Bears responded with a 16-4 run to pull within 13, but that was as close as they would get.
The first half was like a heavyweight title fight, with each team exchanging big blows.
After Omier opened the scoring with a free throw, Gonzaga went on an 8-0 run capped by Ben Gregg’s layup off a pass from Ike. Gregg also had two free throws and Ike and Hickman made layups during the spurt.
The Bears responded with their own 8-0 run to regain a 9-8 lead. Omier sparked the streak with a layup and Jalen Celestine finished it with a 3-pointer.
Stromer made a 3-pointer to start a 10-0 run by Gonzaga as it pulled ahead 18-9. Stromer made two treys during the streak and Huff added a pair of layups off turnovers.
The Bulldogs led by as many as 21 in the half, on a 3-pointer by Hickman with 29 seconds left, before Jeremy Roach made two late free throws for Baylor to make it 49-30 at the intermission. Roach led the Bears with seven points in the half.
Hickman led Gonzaga with 11 points before the intermission and Gregg and Stromer added nine apiece, the latter on three 3-pointers.