Zags take 'a step back' with 2nd straight road loss

SAN FRANCISCO - San Francisco took the big blow and delivered a knockout punch to the big boys of the West Coast Conference.

Cody Doolin converted a three-point play with 4.1 seconds remaining in overtime, and San Francisco benefited from an intentional foul to upset Gonzaga 96-91 on Saturday in a game marred by the physical play.

Robert Sacre's elbow on Angelo Caloiaro in the final minute of regulation was called an intentional foul. That helped the Dons (10-10, 4-1) force overtime and hand the Bulldogs (13-7, 3-2) consecutive conference losses for the first time since February 2000.

"I was joking with our alumni, 'This is kind of like Caddyshack. We're Lake Minnetonka. And they're Camp North Star,' " San Francisco coach Rex Walters said. "They've got the (fans) flying in our Learjets. They're kind of the rich kids of the conference."

Not on this day.

Doolin finished with 23 points and Caloiaro scored 17 points in the biggest win of the year for San Francisco, who moved into sole possession of second place in the conference behind No. 22 St. Mary's. The home fans rushed the court and tossed everything from T-shirts to soft drinks airborne in a wild celebration afterward.

"I looked in our pile and didn't see any players in there," Walters said. "It made me nervous that we thought we could beat them."

Steven Gray and Demetri Goodson had 20 points apiece for the Bulldogs, who suffered their second straight loss following a nine-game winning streak. A setback at Santa Clara on Thursday was their first defeat since an 83-79 loss at Notre Dame on Dec. 11.

Now a Gonzaga program that has made the NCAA tournament 12 straight years suddenly finds itself in a rut.

"We knew it would be tough going on the road in the league, and it's been hard on us this year," Gonzaga coach Mark Few said. "We took a step back this weekend."

The Bulldogs still had a chance in the closing moments.

After the Dons went ahead by one, David Stockton - son of Hall of Fame point guard John Stockton - hit a 3-pointer to give Gonzaga an 81-79 lead 41.6 seconds left. Then, Rashad Green missed the second of two free throws, with Sacre grabbing the rebound that led to a sure-to-be-debated call by Gonzaga.

Sacre swung his elbows, connecting with Caloiaro's face and knocking him to the ground hard. Officials initially called a foul, but changed it to an intentional foul after a video review - giving San Francisco two free throws and the ball and, seemingly, an early victory.

"Best elbow I've taken in a while," Caloiaro said.

Few didn't completely disagree with the call.

"I don't know what to tell our guys," he said. "He got tied up, two guys jumped on him and tied him up. We teach them to protect the ball with their elbows. It's a tough situation for a kid to be in. But the letter of the law is if you swing your elbows near the face, it's an intentional foul."

Gonzaga plays host to Saint Mary's on Thursday.

GONZAGA (13-7)

Harris 6-13 2-4 15, Keita 0-0 0-0 0, Sacre 7-11 0-0 14, Goodson 6-14 6-6 20, Gray 7-20 5-9 20, Carter 0-1 0-0 0, Arop 2-4 1-6 6, Stockton 2-5 0-0 6, Olynyk 1-4 1-2 3, Monninghoff 1-1 0-0 3, Hart 0-0 0-0 0, Dower 2-3 0-0 4. Totals 34-76 15-27 91.

SAN FRANCISCO (10-10)

Blackwell 6-10 3-5 15, Caloiaro 5-13 5-6 17, Williams 5-16 4-5 16, Green 5-13 7-8 18, Doolin 7-11 8-8 23, Petrovic 0-1 0-0 0, Raffington 0-0 0-0 0, Diarra 2-2 0-0 4, Johnson 1-2 0-0 3. Totals 31-68 27-32 96.

Halftime_Gonzaga 48-45. End Of Regulation_Tied 86. 3-Point Goals_Gonzaga 8-21 (Stockton 2-4, Goodson 2-4, Monninghoff 1-1, Arop 1-1, Harris 1-4, Gray 1-7), San Francisco 7-22 (Williams 2-6, Caloiaro 2-8, Johnson 1-2, Green 1-2, Doolin 1-3, Petrovic 0-1). Fouled Out_Green, Stockton. Rebounds_Gonzaga 49 (Sacre 9), San Francisco 41 (Blackwell 12). Assists_Gonzaga 22 (Stockton 5), San Francisco 9 (Green 3). Total Fouls_Gonzaga 27, San Francisco 21. Technicals_San Francisco Bench 2. A_4,195.