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SPOKANE, Wash. - It was difficult for the 5,279 fans inside the Kennel to find anything Elle Tinkle did wrong in Gonzaga women's basketball's 67-49 victory over San Diego Monday.
Tinkle did miss two shots, including one from behind-the-arc, but other than that the junior was just about flawless. In 24 minutes, she finished with 26 points, the most by a Zag this season in a single game. Tinkle made eight of her 10 shots from the field, with 5-of-6 coming from three-point range. She matched her career-high of 15 points, which she set two days ago, at halftime.
The Bulldogs (9-4, 2-0 West Coast Conference) led for all 40 minutes, by as many as 33 midway through the second half, and handed San Diego its second loss of the season. Gonzaga also extended its winning streak to 15 over the Toreros, dating back to the 2008 WCC Tournament Championship game.
The Zags held USD to 29 percent shooting from the field. The Toreros made just five of their 27 attempts (18.5 percent) in the first half. Gonzaga also limited San Diego to 1-of-12 from behind-the-arc. Both teams had 43 rebounds, and both committed 21 turnovers. GU had a 28-20 advantage in points off of turnovers. Gonzaga had 16 assists on its 25 made shots from the field.
Emma Wolfram added 10 points, while Shelby Cheslek was two points shy of her third double-double of the season. Cheslek matched her career-high with 14 rebounds. The conference-leader in steals, Keani Albanez, had four Monday.
San Diego (10-2, 1-1 WCC), which had its six-game win streak snapped, was led by Sophia Ederaine's 13 points, 11 rebounds and six blocks. Katelyn McDaniel and Katherine Hamilton added 11 and 10 points respectively. Maya Hood had a game-high six steals.
Gonzaga welcomes Portland (2-11, 0-2) Saturday. The Pilots suffered an 83-79 loss at home to BYU Monday. They have lost their last five. The Zags have won 11 straight over Portland. Tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. Pacific Time. The game will be broadcast on TheW.tv. Live radio will be available on The Key 1050 AM.