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Gonzaga beats Pepperdine to reach WCC final

Mar 10, 2015 - 5:40 AM Las Vegas, NV (SportsNetwork.com) - Byron Wesley had 25 points to lead No. 7 Gonzaga in a 79-61 victory over Pepperdine in the semifinals of the West Coast Conference Tournament.

Kyle Wiltjer had 17 points and nine rebounds and Przemek Karnowski added 13 points and six boards for the Bulldogs (31-2), who advanced to their 18th straight WCC finals appearance.

Gonzaga, which has won this tournament the past two years, will play BYU, which defeated Portland in the other semifinal game, in a rematch of last year's final on Tuesday.

Stacy Davis had 15 points and seven rebounds and Jeremy Major added 12 points for the Waves (18-13), who had defeated San Diego on Saturday to advance to the finals.

With the score tied early in the second half, Wiltjer hit a jumper to start a 10-0 run from the Bulldogs with Wesley's slam capping the run for a 45-35 lead.

The Waves tried keeping it close as a layup from Lamond Murray Jr. made it a 56-45 game with 12 minutes to play, but Gonzaga scored the next nine points and held a 20-point lead after Wesley finished off a three-point play with 10 1/2 minutes left.

The Bulldogs led by as many as 22 down the stretch as they cruised into the tournament final.

Gonzaga built a seven-point lead early in the first half, but a 3-pointer from Jett Raines and a layup by Atif Russell gave Pepperdine a 21-20 lead with over nine minutes left.

The Bulldogs, though, scored seven straight points to go back in front and held a slim 35-33 lead at the break.

Game Notes

Gonzaga shot 52.5 percent and held Pepperdine to 43.1 percent shooting ... Gonzaga has won 13 WCC Tournament titles ... The Bulldogs defeated the Waves in both regular-season matchups.