SPOKANE, Wash. — Donovan Dent hit a step-back 3-pointer from the left wing with 1.5 seconds left, and LSU rallied from 13 points down in the final eight minutes to beat No. 14 Gonzaga 81-80 on Saturday afternoon at Numerica Veterans Arena.
LSU trailed 68-55 with 8:11 to play and was still down 75-65 with 4:41 left before closing on a 16-5 run. The Tigers improved to 4-0 and beat a ranked opponent for the first time in 15 tries, their first win over an AP-ranked team since a buzzer-beater against Kentucky in February 2024. Gonzaga fell to 2-1.
Dent finished with 23 points and 10 assists. Abdi Bashir Jr. made five 3-pointers and scored 15 points, Skyy Clark added 14, and Michael Ruzic had 12 points and 12 rebounds. Braden Huff led Gonzaga with 18 points and 13 rebounds, Davis Fogle had 15 points, eight rebounds, and six assists, and Isiah Harwell scored 14.
LSU coach Will Wade welcomed the road test.
“You don’t know till you get tested, and some people don’t. You know, some people think you’re crazy when you come up here and test yourselves,” Wade said. “And look, we learned a lot about ourselves. Even if the last shot doesn’t go in, we still learned a lot about ourselves.”
Dent Hit A 3 At The End Of Each Half
Dent also banked in a 3-pointer at the first-half buzzer, giving LSU a 39-37 halftime lead.
The Tigers had pulled within 79-78 when Gonzaga made 1 of 2 free throws with 12 seconds left. On the final possession, Dent said, his defender tripped near half court, which gave him a running start.
“We got the switch, and I don’t think we wanted to go to overtime there,” Dent said. “So I knew I was shooting that no matter what, and it went in. It was a good shot.”
Gonzaga’s last attempt, from near half court, missed as the horn sounded.
Ruzic Kept LSU Even On The Glass
Gonzaga outscored LSU 46-28 in the paint and shot 44.6% from the field, but the Tigers made 12 of 26 3-pointers to Gonzaga’s 5 of 17 and finished even on the boards at 42 apiece. Ruzic grabbed seven of his 12 rebounds on the offensive end.
LSU defended Huff without doubling him, Wade said.
“Huff’s just a great player, and he backed us down and scored enough,” Wade said. “But we had enough resistance down there a few times that we were able to stop him. But he’s a phenomenal player.”
“It wasn’t pretty. And look, we’re not a finished product, and we’re not anywhere near as good as we’re going to be in a couple more weeks or a couple more months,” Wade said. “But you know, we got some grit to us, which was good to see.”
The game had 13 lead changes and seven ties.
Gonzaga hosts Montana State on Tuesday. LSU returns home to face ULM on Wednesday at 7 p.m. CT and hosts Queens on Saturday at 7 p.m. CT.
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