Analysis: No. 12 Gonzaga counters Labaran Philon Jr. and No. 8 Alabama's best shot to stay unbeaten 95-85

Nov. 25—LAS VEGAS — Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Manny Pacquiao. Mike Tyson vs. Evander Holyfield. Deontay Wilder vs. Tyson Fury II.

MGM Grand Garden Arena has played host to a variety of iconic boxing matches through the years, becoming an unofficial hub for the combat sport in the United States. The second-annual Players Era Festival served up another juicy heavyweight bout Monday night at the historic Las Vegas venue.

The fighters? No. 12 Gonzaga and No. 8 Alabama.

More like, No. 12 Gonzaga and Labaron Philon Jr.

The Zags withstood a series of blows early from Alabama's dynamic guard. Philon Jr came back with another round of jabs in the second half of Monday's top-15 showdown. Gonzaga waited for the final five minutes to throw its big haymaker.

Philon Jr. delivered head blows and headaches alike but Mark Few's team bottled up the high-scoring sophomore when it counted and emerged with a monumental 95-85 victory in Vegas.

Alabama's guard, a preseason All-American candidate, had 29 points through the first 30 minutes of Monday's game. His stats in the final 9 minutes, 51 seconds? Zero points, two missed shots, three assists and two turnovers.

"Philon's a really, really good player but I just felt like it came a point in time where it was time to win," Gonzaga's Tyon Grant-Foster said. "Down the stretch we knew what we needed to so. Padlocks."

The Zags (6-0) stayed unbeaten, won a sixth straight game by double figures and kept their chances of a Players Era championship alive with Monday's result.

Gonzaga resumes tournament play in Vegas with a 6:30 p.m. (TruTV) tipoff on Tuesday against Maryland (4-1). Not long after the Zags finished, the Terrapins were taking the floor to play UNLV in Monday's nightcap at MGM Grand Garden Arena.

"I thought we had to take great care of the ball, which for the most part in a high-possession I thought we did even though the ones did have were in the boneheaded nature," Few said. "Then I thought our shot selection was going to be really, really important. To have shot discipline. Then obviously we really wanted to establish our defense, which I thought we did a nice job especially late in the second half."

Grant-Foster led Gonzaga in the scoring column with 21 points and came up with some of the Zags' most important plays at both ends, including a steal-and-score transition dunk with just over four minutes to play that opened up a two-possession lead.

The Grand Canyon transfer, who wasn't cleared to play for the Zags until an hour before the team's preseason finale in October, also had seven rebounds, claiming 5 of 20 offensive boards Gonzaga accumulated throughout Monday's game. The senior wing added two blocks and a steal to his final tally.

Gonzaga got big games from veteran posts Graham Ike and Braden Huff, who combined to score 39 points and pull down 19 rebounds. Ike missed his first six shots from the field but shrugged off the slow start to finish with 22 points and 11 rebounds — his fourth double-double in six games. Huff had 18 points on 9 -of -12 shooting and hauled down eight rebounds.

Ike helped Gonzaga ice the game from the foul line late, making 5 of 6. Freshman guard Mario Saint-Supery was also clutch there, scoring all 10 of his points at the free -throw line in just his second start. Saint-Supery also notched six assists and five rebounds.

The Zags struggled shooting from behind the arc, making just 6 of 22 (27%), but came up with the ones that mattered. After missing four straight to start the game, transfer guard Adam Miller connected on his first 3 midway through the second half to give the Zags their biggest lead up to that point at 60-51.

The Crimson Tide quickly erased the deficit and briefly pulled in front, but the Zags closed strong, getting another timely 3-pointer from senior Steele Venters, who had a season-high 12 points on 4 of 8 from the 3-point line. It was Venters' first double-digit game since his final season at Eastern Washington, before the former Big Sky Player of the Year missed multiple seasons with Achilles and ACL injuries.

Alabama led for 15 minutes in the first half, but Gonzaga surged in the final three minutes, tying it at 36-36 when Ike dished underneath to Huff for a two-handed jam before taking a two-point lead on Huff's driving layup the next possession.

Gonzaga executed a perfect offensive set on its final possession in the first half. Mario Saint-Supery curled around the right side of the 3-point arc before shoveling inside to Huff, who redirected the ball back outside to Venters. Wide open, the senior wing buried a 3-pointer that gave the Zags a 45-42 lead at the break.

Philon Jr. did his damage, but he was also responsible for six of Alabama's 13 turnovers. The Crimson Tide were no match for the Zags on the glass, where GU built a 48-36 advantage and 20-13 edge on the offensive glass. Gonzaga had a 52-42 advantage in paint points and 25-10 advantage in second-chance points.