SAN FRANCISCO — Mark Few felt uneasy until the final buzzer sounded.
After three years of last second shots and steals that always seemed to go San Francisco’s way, the Gonzaga coach had seen too many leads at War Memorial Gymnasium evaporate. Almost happened again, too.
Kelly Olynyk had 26 points and nine rebounds, and Elias Harris added 17 points and 13 rebounds to carry No. 5 Gonzaga past San Francisco 71-61 on Saturday, snapping a three-game losing streak on The Hilltop.
Gonzaga weathered another strong - but brief - shooting display while its front court tandem bullied and bruised their way to a fast start and a furious finish. Olynyk finished 13 for 17 from the floor, Harris made 7 of 15 shots and both highlighted an 11-0 run in the final minutes that put the Bulldogs (25-2, 12-0 West Coast Conference) ahead for good.
Cole Dickerson scored 15 points and Cody Doolin added 14 to help the Dons (11-15, 4-9) erase a 15-point first half deficit. Unlike the previous three seasons when San Francisco stunned Gonzaga at home, though, the Bulldogs’ big men regrouped to overwhelm the diminutive Dons when it mattered most.
ATLANTIC 10
Clarke paces Butler
NEW YORK - Rotnei Clarke scored 22 points and No. 11 Butler beat Fordham 68-63 on Saturday, the Rams’ sixth consecutive loss and ninth in the past 10 games.
Clarke was the key figure for the Bulldogs (21-5, 8-3 Atlantic 10) late in the game when Fordham (6-20, 2-9) was able to close within 65-63 with 18 seconds to play.
The Bulldogs closed it out by making four of six free throws the rest of the way to improve to 36-10 after a loss under Coach Brad Stevens. Butler lost to Charlotte 71-67 on Wednesday.
Chris Gaston had 21 points for Fordham in his first game back after missing seven with a knee injury. Mandell Thomas had 12 points, including two three-pointers in the final minute, for the Rams.
MOUNTAIN WEST Rams victorious
AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. - Dorian Green scored 22 points to help No. 24 Colorado State hold off Air Force 89-86 Saturday for its sixth consecutive victory.
The Rams led 82-72 with 1:05 remaining, but the Falconspulled within four twice in the final minute. Michael Lyons hit a three-pointer for Air Force with two seconds left, but Colorado State inbounded the ball without incident to close the game.
The Rams (21-4, 8-2 Mountain West) have won eight of nine and dropped the Falcons to 11-2 at Clune Arena. All five starters finished with at least 10 points for Colorado State, with Pierce Hornung getting 13 points and 16 rebounds.
Air Force (15-9, 6-5) trailed 75-72 with 3:29 left, but the Rams used a 7-0 run during the next two minutes to pull away.
Lyons, the conference’s leading scorer, had a careerhigh 45 points on 17-for-25 shooting - the highest scoring total in conference play this season, the most by a Falcons player in a league game, and the most in Air Force history since Bob Beckel had a schoolrecord 50 against Arizona on Feb. 28, 1959. Todd Fletcher added 11 points.
In another Mountain West game, Cameron Bairstow had 16 points and seven rebounds, and reserve Jamal Fenton hit 3 three-pointers in the second half to lead No. 19 New Mexico (22-4, 9-2) to a 60-50 victory over visiting Boise State (16-8, 4-6).
CONFERENCE USA
Memphis streaking
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - Adonis Thomas scored a career-high 23 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead No. 22 Memphis to its 16th consecutive victory, 71-59 over Marshall on Saturday night.
Joe Jackson added 12 points and Geron Johnson had 11 for the Tigers (22-3, 11-0 Conference USA), who improved to 7-0 in road games with the help of their reserves. The Memphis bench outscored their Marshall counterparts 19-6.
Elijah Pittman and DeAndre Kane scored 16 points apiece for Marshall (11-15, 4-7). Dennis Tinnon added 15 points and 13 rebounds for the Thundering Herd.
PACIFIC-12 Ducks survive
PULLMAN, Wash.- E.J. Singler made two free throws with 3.8 seconds left, lifting No. 23 Oregon to a 79-77 overtime victory over slumping Washington State on Saturday to hold on to first place in the Pacific-12 Conference.
Singler scored 25 points to lead Oregon (21-5, 10-3), which has won three in a row since a three-game losing streak dropped them from The Associated Press Top 10. Carlos Emory added 20 for the Ducks.
Royce Woolridge scored a career-high 36 points for Washington State (11-15, 2-11), losers of six consecutive. Woolridge missed a half-court shot as time expired.
Sports, Pages 35 on 02/17/2013