The University of San Diego said goodbye to Gonzaga as a West Coast Conference opponent Tuesday night the best way the Toreros know how.
In defeat.
But it was much closer than anyone expected.
Seventh-ranked Gonzaga held on to defeat USD 99-93 at the Jenny Craig Pavilion – the 20th straight Zags win in a series the Bulldogs have dominated by a decisive 83-22 edge.
Gonzaga, which is ranked second in the nation by NET analytics, improved to 14-1 overall and 2-0 in WCC play. USD fell to 6-8 and 1-1.
Dominating the boards and the paint. Gonzaga, which was a 26 ½-point favorite, led by 21 points with 7:21 to play. But the hosts battled behind the play of their Ty-Laur Johnson led guards and pulled to within five points — 98-93 — with 11.2 seconds to go.
“I’m proud of the way our players fought back and made that late run,” said USD coach Steve Lavin. “Our resilience and pushback was the most impressive part of tonight. They are very strong up front … they have dominant frontline players.
“But I like the 25 points we got off turnovers. I’m really proud of the effort.”
San Diego, CA – December 30: D’Arrae Goodwin #3 of University of San Diego shoots against Tyon Grant-Foster #7 of Gonzaga on December 30, 2025 in San Diego, CA. (K.C. Alfred / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Added USD guard Adrian McIntyre: “We did a good job of bringing energy to what we were doing. We believe in ourselves. We put in a lot of work.”
Johnson led USD with 21 points. Juanse Gorosito added 16 and freshman forward D’Arrae Goodwin 15. McIntyre had 12 points, a team-high seven rebounds and seven assists.
Jalen Warley paced Gonzaga with 22 points while Tyon-Grant-Foster had 18 and Braden Huff and Mario Saint-Supery each had 14.
Warley had 14 rebounds and Graham Ike had nine, with Huff pulling in eight as Gonzaga dominated the boards 44-26. Gonzaga out-scored USD 58-38 in the paint and had a 22-4 edge in second-chance points.
The first half ended with several ugly exchanges between forwards Vuk Boskovic of USD and Ike. Each finished the half with three fouls, including a technical.
Gonzaga went into intermission with a 48-37 lead built around its inside game against the smaller Toreros. Gonzaga out-scored USD 30-14 in the paint in the first half and had an 11-2 edge on second-chance points while out-rebounding the hosts 22-12.
San Diego, CA – December 30: Juanse Gorosito #4 of University of San Diego shoots against Adam Miller #23 of Gonzaga on December 30, 2025 in San Diego, CA. (K.C. Alfred / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
USD’s last lead of the game came at 11-9 with 15 ½ minutes to play on a Boskovic three-pointer.
Gonzaga, however, went on a 10-0 run from that point and extended their lead to 15 at 36-21 with 5:55 to play in the half. But three straight three-pointers by Toreros Goodwin, Toneari Lane and Johnson cut the deficit to 36-30.
Grant Foster led Gonzaga with 13 points in the first half. Johnson had 10 for USD.