Box Score Dec. 31, 2016 Final Stats | Photo Gallery 
SPOKANE, Wash. - The Gonzaga Bulldogs trailed early, then grabbed a second-half lead, before Pacific regained that lead late to hand Gonzaga the 65-63 loss on Saturday afternoon in Spokane.
The Zags had taken a 63-62 lead with 1:05 left on a Laura Stockton jumper, but a missed jumper on the next possession and two missed shots on their last possession saw Pacific keep the lead they gained on a three-point play following the Stockton made jumper.
Jill Barta scored 15 and grabbed eight rebounds and Kiara Kudron scored 10 and grabbed eight boards, as those two continued their solid output as of late. Point guard Laura Stockton had 14 points, dished seven assists, and had three steals. Zhané Templeton scored seven off the bench, and Elle Tinkle grabbed eight boards with three steals.
The Zags started slow, plagued by turnovers, trailing 9-0 and 13-7 by the end of one quarter. The Tigers continued to build their lead early in the second quarter, before taking their largest lead, 21-7, at the 7:30 mark of the second quarter. From that point to a layup from Jill Barta at 6:38 in the third quarter, the Zags fought back and took a 33-32 lead, their first of the game. During that stretch, GU outscored Pacific 26-11 and it included a seven-minute scoreless stretch for the Tigers.
That lead extended to 43-34 on a Stockton jumper with 2:26 left in the third. The Tigers hung there though and regained their advantage in the fourth quarter, tying the game at 60 with 2:11 to play. After a Barta free throw, Pacific led 62-61 on jumper and sealed it with the three-point play with 57 seconds left after Gonzaga's brief lead.
Pacific shot 47 percent from the field and Gonzaga shot 36.5 percent, and was two-of-15 from three. The Zags did get to the foul line 21 times, making 15 and won the rebounding battle, 39-32.
The Bulldogs fell to 9-4 and 0-2 in the West Coast Conference. They will look to avoid their longest losing streak of the season next Thursday as they host San Francisco at 6 pm. The game is live on SWX locally.
