Pangos' 23 help Zags shake off Air Force

by From news and wire services
| December 23, 2011 8:00 PM

SPOKANE - Kevin Pangos scored 23 points and Sam Dower added 16 points and eight rebounds - all in the second half - as Gonzaga grinded out a 70-60 victory over Air Force on Thursday night.

Elias Harris added 12 points and Gary Bell Jr. had 10 for the Bulldogs (9-2), winners of four straight. Todd Fletcher had 17 points for the Falcons (6-3), who played most of the way without leading scorer Michael Lyons, who went down in the opening minutes with an ankle injury.

"They're a really, really difficult opponent to prepare for. We had one day of preparation and they came in and did a great job. I thought their coaching staff did a great job, I thought their players did a great job. We finally made some plays down the stretch to get the win," Gonzaga coach Mark Few said. "We had to go defensive zone to make stops and we did a really great job taking care of the basketball - we took some great shots."

In a back-and-forth game that saw Air Force grab its biggest lead, 36-32, early in the second half on Taylor Broekhuis' basket inside, Gonzaga took charge behind Dower. With his team trailing 38-37, he scored six straight points for the Bulldogs, who took a 46-44 lead with 10:39 remaining. His three-point play with 7:52 left capped an 8-0 burst that put Gonzaga up 54-46.

A jumper by Taylor Stewart pulled Air Force to within 54-49 with 7:17 left, but Gonzaga responded with a 7-0 run capped by Pangos’ 3-pointer with 5:35 left and grabbed its biggest lead, 61-49.

The Falcons never got closer than eight the rest of the way.

Gonzaga seemed to be in control early, riding Pangos’ three 3-pointers to a 15-11 lead. Pangos finished 6-of-12 from 3-point range.

But Air Force stayed close, grabbing its first lead, 19-17, on a driving layup by Taylor Stewart with 7:40 left in the half.

Gonzaga hosts Portland on Wednesday in their West Coast Conference opener.

AIR FORCE (6-3)

Fitzgerald 3-5 6-6 14, Stewart 5-9 2-2 12, Broekhuis 4-9 0-0 9, Fletcher 7-12 0-0 17, Lyons 0-1 0-0 0, Hammonds 0-0 1-2 1, Williams 0-1 0-0 0, Carter 0-0 0-1 0, Earls 3-4 0-2 6, Yon 0-1 0-0 0, Brakeville 0-0 0-0 0, Barnhill 0-0 1-2 1. Totals 22-42 10-15 60.

GONZAGA (9-2)

Harris 4-7 4-4 12, Hart 0-2 0-0 0, Sacre 0-0 0-0 0, Pangos 7-14 3-3 23, Bell 4-8 0-0 10, Carter 0-2 2-2 2, Landry Edi 0-0 1-2 1, Stockton 1-2 3-4 5, Spangler 0-0 1-2 1, Monninghoff 0-1 0-0 0, Dower 5-9 6-10 16. Totals 21-45 20-27 70.

Halftime_Gonzaga 28-26. 3-Point Goals_Air Force 6-16 (Fletcher 3-7, Fitzgerald 2-3, Broekhuis 1-3, Williams 0-1, Yon 0-1, Lyons 0-1), Gonzaga 8-18 (Pangos 6-12, Bell 2-4, Stockton 0-1, Monninghoff 0-1). Fouled Out_None. Rebounds_Air Force 20 (Fletcher 5), Gonzaga 30 (Dower 8). Assists_Air Force 8 (Stewart 5), Gonzaga 12 (Harris 3). Total Fouls_Air Force 21, Gonzaga 12. A_6,000.