Friday's Shootaround: Elias Harris one and done?

Gonzaga 89, St. Mary's 82: Elias Harris is gone after this season, right? I mean, has there been a freshman that has impressed more with less hype coming in? Last night, Elias Harris had 31 points and 13 boards as the Zags went into McKeon Pavilion and pretty easily handled a St. Mary's team that more than a few expect to make the NCAA Tournament. Gonzaga was up by 12 at halftime, and eventually held on as the Gaels made a comeback in the final minutes.

Matt Bouldin had 22 points and Steven Gray went for 14 points, 14 boards, and 6 assists, while Omar Samhan paced SMC with 31 and 12 of his own, but the story of this game was Harris. The kid's game just screams NBA. He's 6'8" with the strength and athleticism to dunk on or grab a board over just about anyone at this level, but he's shown the ability to hit the three and the mobility to drive to the rim from the perimeter. Gonzaga now has beaten Portland and St. Mary's on the road, and will head to San Diego next (you think the WCC schedule makers wanted this conference race to be close?), and if the Zags win at San Diego, you can all but call off the WCC season and hand the title to the Zags.

That's assuming you haven't already.

Louisiana Tech 81, Fresno State 73: Louisiana Tech looks like they may just run away with the WAC. Kyle Gibson scored a career high 32 points and Magnum Rolle added 16 point and 13 boards as the Bulldogs used a 20-7 run to open up a 20 point lead in the second half. Fresno would come back to make this interesting, but the game was never really in doubt. Tech is now 17-2 on the season and 5-0 in WAC play.

Pac-10: Quickly, as this league is too much to figure out.

• Cal 93, Washington State 88: Jerome Randle had a career-high 39 points and added 9 assists as the Bears took sole possession of first place in the Pac-10, a game up in the loss column on five different teams.
• Washington 94, Stanford 61: Quincy Pondexter had 27 points and 10 boards as the Huskies won in a rout, a win U-Dub desperately needed.
• Arizona State 76, Oregon 57: Rihard Kuksiks scored 25 points as the Sun Devils got out to a 19 point lead at the break.
• Oregon State 67, Arizona 64: Lathen Wallace buried a three with 1.1 seconds left as the Beavers knocked off the Wildcats.
  

Other notable games

• Tennessee 81, Auburn 55: Wayne Chism paced the Vols with 14 points and 12 boards as Tennessee kept rolling despite playing with just six scholarship players. Up just one at halftime, the Vols ratcheted up their defense in the second half, holding Auburn to just 18 points.
• Georgetown 85, Seton Hall 73: Greg Monroe was the only Hoyas start that didn't reach double figures as Chris Wright's 21 points and 6 assists and Austin Freeman's 16 points paced Georgetown. Jason Clark had a career-high 20 points, and when he does that, Georgetown is going to be damn near impossible to beat.
  
• Mississippi State 82, Arkansas 80: Jarvis Varnado notched his second triple-double of the season with 17 points, 12 boards, and 10 blocks and Dee Bost added 20 points and 6 assists as the Bulldogs held on against a late rally from the Razorbacks. Marshon Powell scored 14 of his 25 in the last 8 minutes.
• Butler 64, Cleveland State 55: Willie Veasley scored 16 points and Shelvin Mack added 15 as the Bulldogs improved to 6-0 in the Horizon.
• Michigan 69, Indiana 45: Manny Harris scored 17 of his 21 points after halftime as the Wolverines held on to win a game they desperately needed. DeShawn Sims scored 20 points for Michigan, who is now 9-7 heading into a home game with UConn.
• William & Mary 85, James Madison 78: The Tribe got 21 points from Quinn McDowell and held on despite a late rally from the Dukes to improve to 5-1 in the CAA.
• Radford 62, Coastal Carolina 52: Artsiom Parakhouski scored 20 points and added 10 boards as Radford beat CCU in a game of the two best teams in the Big South.
  

Thursday's Best

• Jarvis Varnado notched a triple double - 17 points, 12 boards, 10 blocks - in a win over Arkansas.
• Jerome Randle's career-high 39 points and 9 assists carried Cal to a win as he outplayed fellow potential Pac-10 player of the year Klay Thompson (18 points).
• Warren Niles scored 39 points, but Oral Roberts was unable to beat IUPUI in OT.
• Detroit's Chase Simon scored 33 points and grabbed 12 boards in a win over Milwaukee.
• Omar Samhan had 31 points and 12 boards, but was outdone by 31 and 13 from freshman Elias Harris as the Zags beat the Gaels.