No. 1 Gonzaga beats No. 11 West Virginia in Jimmy V Classic

Losing Jalen Suggs in the first half shook up No. 1 Gonzaga.

Getting him back in the second half Wednesday provided a needed jolt of energy.

Joel Ayayi matched his career high with 21 points and Andrew Nembhard and Corey Kispert each scored 19 points, and Suggs’ return shifted the transition game into gear to help the Bulldogs rally past No. 11 West Virginia 87-82 at the Jimmy V Classic in Indianapolis.

“At first, we were kind of disappointed because we all love Jalen,” Nembhard said. “Him coming back in the game was big for us. He played football, so you know he’s tough and we’re pretty versatile so we could do some different things in the second to help him out. It worked out well for us.”

The freshman finished with four points, five assists and six rebounds — much of that production coming after he went down with what initially appeared to be a serious left ankle injury. By the second half, he was lobbying to get back on the court. And once he did, everything turned for Gonzaga, which struggled against the Mountaineers’ size and strength.

But once the Zags were off and running, it was no match. Gonzaga (3-0) has won seven straight, dating to the end of last season, and already has two wins over top-15 opponents: Kansas and West Virginia (3-1).

Derek Culver finished with with 18 points and 15 rebounds and Oscar Tshiebwe had 14 points and nine rebounds before fouling out with 7:26 to play to lead the Mountaineers.

#2 Baylor 82, #5 Illinois 69: Adam Flagler scored 18 points and the Bears (3-0) pulled away late to beat the Fighting Illini in the second game of the Jimmy V Classic. Baylor won for the first time this season with head coach Scott Drew on the sideline. He missed the previous two games after a positive virus test, but watched his team...