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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) -- Here they go again.
Gonzaga, the little Jesuit school that became the darling of last season's NCAA Tournament with its improbable run to the West Regional final, knocked off Louisville 77-66 in the first round
Thursday night behind Richie Frahm's 31 points.
"We're not a Cinderella team anymore," Gonzaga's Ryan Floyd
said. "Last year was different because people didn't know who we
were. This year we're as talented as we were last year. We're not
expecting any Cinderella treatment."
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The experience Gonzaga has in the backcourt is the
reason the Bulldogs advance in the NCAA Tournament.
Richie Frahm had struggled finding a consistent groove with his shot
during the regular season. He found it Thursday, hitting for 31 points. Having the combination
of Frahm and Matt Santangelo make the Bulldogs a legitimate threat to beat
St. John's in the second round, assuming the Red Storm beat Northern Arizona.
Frahm had the look of a cagey veteran in NCAA play, never seeming pushed when Louisville took the lead or kept it tight. Having Frahm and Santangelo made it easier for Mark Few in his first head coaching game in the NCAA Tournament. Few answered any critics who may have wondered if he could handle the pressure that Dan Monson faced a year ago.
Gonzaga advanced once again as a No. 10 seed, becoming the first lower seed to win on the first day of the tournament. It seemed only fitting.
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As they were last year, the Bulldogs are seeded 10th in the
West. A year ago, their first victim was No. 7 seed Minnesota. This
time, the seventh-seeded Cardinals of coach Denny Crum couldn't
stop the scrappy and accurate 'Zags.
Despite a season-high 24 turnovers, Gonzaga pulled away in the
second half with timely shooting and a tight defense that held
Louisville to 38 percent from the field. Crum, though, said the
Cardinals were more responsible for the lousy shooting than
Gonzaga's defense was.
"We had open shots all over the gym and we just couldn't make
them," Crum said. "That's about as bad as we can shoot it."
The Bulldogs (25-8) will play second-seeded St. John's in the
second round Saturday. St. John's beat Northern Arizona 61-56.
Marques Maybin scored 21 and Nate Johnson 14 for Louisville
(19-12), making its 23rd NCAA appearance in Crum's 29 seasons at
the school. It was the second year in a row that the Cardinals lost
in the first round as a No. 7 seed.
Matt Santangelo scored 16 and Axel Dench had 14 points, six
rebounds and six assists for Gonzaga, which shot 57 percent from
the field.
Frahm, one of four seniors in the Bulldogs' starting lineup, was
4-for-8 from 3-point range and figured at both ends of the most
spectacular and decisive moments in the game.
|  | | Gonzaga forward Casey Calvary blocks a shot attempt by Louisville counterpart Nate Johnson. |
"I've scored 30 before so it's not a new thing, but it was
nice," Frahm said. "The whole Frahm household is here to watch
it. This could have been the last game of my senior year if I
didn't have a good game."
With Gonzaga leading 49-48, Louisville's Quintin Bailey was
headed for a breakaway stuff. But the 6-foot-5 Frahm, who had seven
blocks all season, somehow blocked Bailey's dunk from behind. At
the other end, Frahm sank a 3-pointer from the corner to the roar
of the big pro-Bulldogs crowd and Gonzaga led 52-48 with 10:51 to
play.
"Sometimes people underestimate the athleticism of this team,"
Gonzaga coach Mark Few said. "Richie is a very athletic two
guard."
Bailey thought Frahm should have been called for a foul.
"I thought I was wide-open coming from halfcourt," Bailey
said. "I turned around as I went up and he hit me. I believe it
was a foul, but the ref didn't call it and things can't change now.
It was a definite momentum shifter. Coach Crum got the technical
right after that and everything went downhill from there."
Crum said he didn't know why the technical was called.
"I asked the guy and he said the whole bench jumped up," Crum
said. "I said, `So did 10,000 other people.' Everybody in the gym
jumped up."
The play triggered an 11-4 run that put the Bulldogs ahead 60-52
on Santangelo's bank shot with 5:50 to go.
"The crowd goes crazy," Few said. "That does nothing but
energize your team."
Before Frahm's block and 3-pointer put Gonzaga ahead for good,
there were 20 lead changes, 15 in the first half as Louisville
clung to a 39-38 lead at the break.
Rashad Brooks' 3-pointer capped an 11-2 run that gave the
Cardinals a 32-25 lead with 6:05 left in the half.
"We've been down before, and seven points is nothing to go
calling home about," Santangelo said.
After a Gonzaga timeout, Floyd, Frahm and Santangelo sank
3-pointers in a 9-1 spurt that put the Bulldogs back on top 34-33
with 2:45 to go.
While the 'Zags were 8-for-16 from 3-point range, Louisville was
2-for-17. The Cardinals' Tony Williams, a 36 percent 3-point
shooter during the season, was 0-for-7. In his final collegiate
game, Williams scored nine points in the first half but was 0-for-5
from the field in the second and finished with 11 points.
Last year, Gonzaga beat Minnesota, Stanford and Florida and gave
eventual national champion Connecticut a major scare in the NCAA
West Regional final in Phoenix. This season, after coach Dan Monson
moved to Minnesota and quick guard Quentin Hall used up his
eligibility, Gonzaga struggled at times, but won the West Coast
Conference tournament with an overtime victory over Pepperdine.
Gonzaga's Casey Calvary, the MVP of the WCC tournament, had two
spectacular blocks but took only two shots, both dunks on lob
passes. He finished with eight points.
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ALSO SEE
Mens College Basketball Scoreboard
Gonzaga NCAA Team Report
Louisville NCAA Team Report
Chat: NCAA Tourney
Second seed St. John's avoids Lumberjacks' ax
Sooners enjoy a 3-for-all against ice-cold Winthrop
Purdue grounds Flyers for 7th straight first-round win
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Post-game news conference from Gonzaga's win over Louisville.
RealVideo: | 28.8
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