Santa Clara stuns Gonzaga 77-76; Bulldogs will likely fall out of AP Top 25 poll

Bulldogs shot 2-for-20 from the 3-point line and squandered a late lead

For a moment, it looked like the Gonzaga Bulldogs had weathered the perfect storm from Santa Clara. 

After trailing by as many as 13 points in the first half, the margin slowly shrank as momentum began to swing in favor of the Zags. With Anton Watson doing all he could offensively, it appeared his team had done just enough after Ryan Nembhard gave the Bulldogs a four-point lead with about a minute left.

But in the blink of an eye, the Broncos scored five points in 50 seconds, capped off by a floater from Adama-Alpha Bal in the final seconds to shock the Bulldogs 77-76. The win snapped a 26-game losing streak to Gonzaga that dated back to 2011. 

For Gonzaga, it's likely that the program's run of 143 straight weeks of being ranked in the AP Top 25 poll will end when Monday's poll is released. The team is now a combined 2-5 in Quad 1 and 2 games and 0-2 on the road. 

Here are three takeaways from Thursday's road loss.

ZAGS OUT-HUSTLED 

Santa Clara's tenacity and hustle dominated the first half. Every Broncos player on the floor was ready to fight for loose balls, crash the glass and simply assert their will against the Zags physically on both ends of the floor. That ferocity caught Gonzaga off guard at first, which led to a double-digit advantage for the home team late in the half.

On the glass, the Bulldogs' inability to box out effectively led to numerous second-chance looks for the Broncos, who won the rebound advantage 27-11 and had six players snatch an offensive rebound. Jake Ensminger brought the energy off the bench with four offensive rebounds in the first half, as the 6-foot-9 redshirt freshman made the most of his six minutes off the bench with more hustle than Gonzaga could muster. Mark Few watched in frustration as Santa Clara beat his team to nearly every loose ball and long rebound.

Few had enough after the Broncos went up by double-digits following an offensive rebound on a missed free throw from Tyree Bryan, who raced down a long rebound and swung it to Bal for a 3-pointer late in the first half. That prompted a timeout from Few and a subsequent substitution for Ben Gregg.

The second half saw a lot more fight, with the Bulldogs winning the rebound margin by three and allowing half as many second-chance points as they did in the first half.

For a team that has shown fight and toughness all season long, neither characteristic was apparent for the full 40 minutes against Santa Clara. Physicality aside, mental lapses defensively on rotations and assignments led to easy looks for the Broncos. And when the defense did manage to create opportunities with a rebound or steal, the offense hardly capitalized on the other end. 

ANTON WATSON DOES IT ALL

For all the mention about lack of energy on Gonzaga's part, Watson was the lone exception in a career night from the Spokane native.

Watson tied his personal best with 32 points to go with nine rebounds and six steals, playing all 40 minutes as the go-to guy for most of the first half. He scored half of the Bulldogs' 34 points and was 7-for-8 from the field heading into the break, which by that point already felt reminiscent of his 32-point game against UCLA in Hawaii. Watson managed to match that scoring output Thursday, all while doing the dirty work in the hustle department like usual.

The second half proved to be a repeat of the Bruins game, as Watson was aggressive in one-on-one matchups on the low block and on the perimeter. He dusted a Broncos defender with a spin move to the baseline, finished through contact at the rim and converted a 3-point play midway through the second half. Post hooks, runners and even one-legged fall-away jumpers were going his way.

Even when he didn't control an entire possession he found ways to score, as he got a clutch layup to go after swooping in to snatch an offensive rebound from his spot in the corner, leading to an awkward finish at the rim to put Gonzaga up 74-72 with two minutes to go.

After Bal's go-ahead basket, Watson didn't get a clean look to potentially win the game on the last possession, as he fell to the floor and appeared to come up slightly limping.

LONG TERM OUTLOOK

The concerns about Gonzaga's lack of an outstanding NCAA Tournament resume are legitimate. Now a combined 2-5 in Quad 1 and 2 games, it will have three more Quad 1 and two Quad 2 games left on the schedule. The next eight weeks will be important in terms of building an at-large resume, otherwise, it'll be win the West Coast Conference Tournament or bust on Selection Sunday.

Even with the automatic bid, the Bulldogs' chances of earning a high seed and playing in the Spokane Arena are on thin ice. The latest ESPN Bracketology by Joe Lunardi had Gonzaga on the 9-seed line entering Thursday, which will likely drop the program down a peg or two.

Finally, for those keeping track, Gonzaga's run of 143 straight appearances in the AP Top 25 poll is likely no more by Monday. The streak was the 10th-longest in the poll's history. That's quite the stretch for the Bulldogs over the last seven years.

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