Feb. 4, 2006
SPOKANE, Wash. - The Santa Clara University men's basketball team fell behind by as many as 25 second-half points and its comeback bid fell short in an 85-71 loss at fifth-ranked Gonzaga Saturday night.
Sophomore forward Mitch Henke (Minnetonka, Minn.) led the Broncos with 17 points, while Travis Niesen added 14 off the bench. Junior center Sean Denison, playing in his first game in more than two weeks, scored 12 points and added seven rebounds for Santa Clara, who fell to 8-12 overall and 1-7 in the West Coast Conference.
The senior duo of Adam Morrison and J.P. Batista combined for more than one-half of the Bulldogs' total scoring with Morrison scoring 24 and Batista added 21. Forward Sean Mallon added 15 as Gonzaga improved its record to 18-3 overall and a perfect 8-0 in league play.
The Broncos shot 43.4 percent from the field in the game but just 23.5 percent from behind the three-point arc on 4-for-17 on long-range shooting. Santa Clara also struggled from the free throw line, making just 21 of its 35 attempts for 60 percent.
After the University of Illinois lost today, Gonzaga extended its nation-leading home win streak to 34-straight and won its 12th-straight game overall.
Santa Clara returns to action Monday night with a 7 p.m. contest at the University of Portland. The game can be heard in the Bay Area on KNTS-AM 1220 and via the Internet on Broncos All-Access.
