What Gonzaga's Ryan Nembhard said after UConn loss

Bulldogs senior guard finished with 16 points and seven assists vs. the Huskies

Gonzaga Bulldogs guard Ryan Nembhard (0) looks to drive past Connecticut Huskies forward Alex Karaban (11). / Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

A late comeback attempt from Gonzaga fell just short against UConn on Saturday night, as the Bulldogs (7-3) dropped their second game in a row after going cold from the field late in the second half of their 77-71 loss to the Huskies from Madison Square Garden.

The Zags trailed by double-digits early on before storming back behind some hot 3-point shooting from Khalif Battle, who knocked down three triples to keep his team within striking distance heading into halftime. The Huskies, led by Liam McNeely (career-high 26 points), held a 43-40 advantage at the break. Gonzaga knotted things up at 55 apiece midway through the second half after Ryan Nembhard connected on an attempt from long range.

The senior guard came out of the gate on fire with 10 points and six assists in the first half, though he cooled off in the second half to finish with 16 points and seven assists. UConn had a response after Nembhard's 3-pointer went down, as the back-to-back champions used a 10-0 scoring run to seize control of momentum for good.

Here's what Nembhard had to say following Gonzaga's third loss of the season:

On what happened down the stretch in the second half:

"Like coach said, I thought we missed a lot of easy ones at the rim to open that second half. There's been a lot of chances to make shots that we normally make. We didn't convert on some of those, and then we just knew it was gonna be a physical game. [UConn is] super physical ... they're a good team."

On what it's like playing in Madison Square Garden:

"I was telling a couple guys yesterday, the first time I stepped out here it was like Broadway. It was like a show with all the lights hitting the court so, it's one of my favorite buildings to play in."

On what he's learned about Gonzaga's identity through 10 games:

"I feel like we're kind of finding our identity. We're figuring it out, and I think we have had some good tests, and we fell short on a couple, but we're not disheartened by that. We know we could've won these two games, they very capable for us to win. We got to clean up some things on both sides of the ball, and it's a long season, and we're going to do that, we're going to take care of business and we're and get better day by day."

MORE GONZAGA NEWS & ANALYSIS

• Gonzaga goes cold from the field in loss to UConn at Madison Square Garden: 3 takeaways

• What Gonzaga's Mark Few said after loss to UConn at Madison Square Garden

• UConn Huskies 77, Gonzaga Bulldogs 71 : Live score recap, highlights from men's college basketball game

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