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Raivio leads Gonzaga over rival Washington

Dec 10, 2006 - 6:24 AM SPOKANE, Washington (Ticker) -- Despite the hype, Derek Raivio treated it like just another home game.

Raivio scored 25 points and freshman Matt Bouldin added 21 as 18th-ranked Gonzaga fed off a frenzied home crowd to rout eighth-ranked Washington, 97-77.

Josh Heytvelt netted 14 points for the Bulldogs, who shot 51 percent (35-of-68) from the field and 8-of-18 from the arc to overwhelm their intrastate rivals.

"We came out with good energy and stuck to our game plan," Gonzaga coach Mark Few said. "We did a good job and I'm really happy about it."

Gonzaga has won 44 straight home games, the longest current streak in the nation. The Bulldogs are 32-0 in the three-year-old McCarthey Center, but have not lost in Spokane since a 72-68 setback to Portland on February 19, 2003, at the Kennel, an overall span of 50 consecutive home wins within the city.

"We have got some great atmosphere in this gym, we usually do when (Gonzaga) and (Washington) play," Few said. "There was energy in the building and our team responded to it and really played off it."

Gonzaga will play its next four games away from the McCarthey Center, including a matchup with Duke at Madison Square Garden.

"It's a great place to call home," Few said. "We need to come out and play well at home, especially after a loss, and especially since we are about to embark on our most difficult road trip of the year."

Despite a loss to Washington State on Tuesday, the Bulldogs used stellar shooting to defeat the state's most-storied basketball program four days later. Raivio was 9-of-17 from the floor and 4-of-7 on 3-pointers.

"We needed to come out and rectify some things (after Tuesday's loss)," Few said. "Obviously, our guys had kind of an edge, and we did a good job of responding."

"Defensively, you can't lose a guy like Raivio," Washington coach Lorenzo Romar said. "We lost him and didn't know where he was. It's my fault as a head coach that we lost him.

Bouldin shot 9-of-12 from the field and nailed his lone shot from the arc.

"Matt is a complete guard," Few said. "He can shoot it, grab it, he's an all-around good guard."

Heralded freshman center Spencer Hawes scored 20 points for the Huskies, who shot 42.5 percent (31-of-73).

"We got to do a better job defensively," Romar said. "Some of it was Gonzaga's offense, but in general, they cut us up."