Gonzaga completed a heck of a comeback against UCLA in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday night, and a huge shot by Julian Strawther solidified their 79-76 win at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Gonzaga trailed UCLA 46-33 at halftime after the Bruins came out hot in the first half. But UCLA, which was missing two of its regular players due to injuries, seemed to run out of energy later in the second half. After being up 59-52 with 12:30 left, UCLA failed to record another field goal until 1:14 left when Jaime Jaquez Jr. made a layup.
Meanwhile, the Bulldogs kept getting points from Malachi Smith and Drew Timme and went up 72-63 with 1:23 left.
Despite their second-half collapse, UCLA didn’t stop fighting. Jaquez took over and scored eight points over the final minute and a half. UCLA even took the lead 76-75 with 13 seconds left on an Amari Bailey 3-pointer.
UCLA BACK ON TOP! pic.twitter.com/e3ZTPf9TEc
— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) March 24, 2023
But Gonzaga would not let that shot keep them down.
Strawther bombed a 3-pointer from the logo with seven seconds left to give Gonzaga the lead back for good.
Take a look at this incredible shot:
MARCH MADNESS FOREVER!! pic.twitter.com/1XgGqHnXcY
— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) March 24, 2023
Strawther later added a free throw to help cement the three-point win.
Strawther only shot 5/15 in the game, but he made the big ones when it mattered the most. Timme had 36 points and 13 rebounds for the Bulldogs, who will face UConn in the Elite Eight.
