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No. 1 Gonzaga remains undefeated with 20th straight double-figure win

Akron v Gonzaga

SPOKANE, WA - DECEMBER 10: Przemek Karnowski #24 of the Gonzaga Bulldogs moves toward the basket against defender Isiah Johnson #23 of the Akron Zips in the second half at McCarthey Athletic Center on December 10, 2016 in Spokane, Washington. Gonzaga defeated Akron 61-43. (Photo by he wasn’t going to be afraid of this thing. it wasn’t going to hold him back, he was going to go for it)

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SPOKANE, Wash. -- Nigel Williams-Goss had 18 points and seven assists as No. 1 Gonzaga beat Pacific 82-61 on Saturday to remain the only undefeated team in Division I.

Johnathan Williams had 12 points and 11 rebounds, and five players scored in double figures for Gonzaga (28-0, 16-0 West Coast), whose 28-game winning streak is the longest in the nation. The Zags have two games left in their quest to become the first team since Kentucky in 2014-15 to finish the regular season undefeated.

Jack Williams scored 16 points for Pacific (10-19, 4-12), which played Gonzaga tough at home on New Year’s Eve. Pacific played without second-leading scorer T.J. Wallace, out with a foot injury.

Pacific was undone by 33.8 percent shooting, compared to 46 percent for Gonzaga, and a poor rebounding performance.

Neither team shot well in the early going, and Gonzaga held a 21-18 lead midway through the first half.

The Zags closed out the half with a 22-12 run, the last eight points by Williams-Goss, to take a 43-30 lead.

Gonzaga opened the second half with a 10-3 run to extend its lead to 20 points. The lead later grew to 70-43 and the Tigers did not threaten again.

BIG PICTURE

Pacific: The Tigers led Gonzaga 46-45 at home on Dec. 31 before the Bulldogs pulled away for a 20-point victory. It was the only WCC game this season in which Gonzaga has trailed in the second half. Pacific is 1-11 in the series against Gonzaga, winning in 1976.

Gonzaga: Gonzaga is off to the best start in program history, and has won 20 straight games by double digits. They have seven wins against teams that are in the top 50 in RPI. The Bulldogs have trailed less than 7 percent of the time in their games this season, and only twice in the second half.

UP NEXT

Pacific plays Santa Clara next Thursday.

Gonzaga plays at San Diego next Thursday, and closes the regular season by hosting BYU next Saturday.