Nov. 6, 2015

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SPOKANE, Wash. -- The Gonzaga women's basketball team started their 2015-16 schedule with a 64-31 exhibition victory over Carroll College (Mont.) Friday.

The Zags held Carroll, No. 24 in NAIA Div. I, scoreless in the first quarter and coasted from there in front of 5,405 fans inside the McCarthey Athletic Center.

Gonzaga made 16 of its first 24 attempts from the field, while the Saints missed their first 17 shots. The Bulldogs shot 62.5 percent in the first quarter, and finished 56.7 percent in the first half.

Zhané Templeton opened her GU career with a game-high 13 points. The freshman made five of her six shots from the field, including three of four from behind-the-perimeter. Elle Tinkle added 10 points. Kiara Kudron grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds. Laura Stockton dished out a game-high five assists in her GU debut, while not turning the ball over once. Shelby Cheslek finished with three blocks.

The Bulldogs dominated the boards, 42-25, and turned 11 offensive rebounds into 10 second chance points. Gonzaga also had a decisive 34-12 scoring advantage in the paint.

"We rebounded the ball well," GU Head Coach Lisa Fortier said. "I liked some of the things we did in our full court pressure. We shot the ball pretty well in the first half. But, there are definitely some takeaways and learning things."

In an exhibition for both teams, the Zags jumped out to a 22-0 lead, before Carroll scored at the 7:49 mark of the second quarter. The Bulldogs led 37-8 at halftime. GU led by as many as 32 points in the first half, and had its largest lead, 55-20, with 8:37 remaining in regulation.

Brooke Jones led Carroll (2-0) with seven points. Hannah Dean had six points and seven rebounds.

Gonzaga opens the regular season against Air Force on Nov. 13. Tipoff is schedule for 6 p.m. Live coverage will be available on GoZags.com.