No. 6 Gonzaga upset 61-62 by 25th ranked Texas A&M in Battle 4 Atlantis semifinal

Texas A&M frustrated the Gonzaga offense and took Domantas Sabonis completely out of the game en route to a one point win in the Battle 4 Atlantis semifinal.

The No. 25 ranked Aggies and No. 6 ranked Zags did not look like the great offensive teams they have been and are supposed to be this season. While neither team shot terribly —both finished the game with field goal percentages in the mid-40s— neither team managed to find an offensive rhythm.

Danuel House led the way with a game high 19 points for the Aggies. Tonny Trocha-Morelos scored 9 of his 14 points in the second half during which he hit all three of his attempts from long range.

The Aggies switched defenses, throwing the Zags' offense off balance. Their zone was particularly effective against Gonzaga's young and inexperienced backcourt. However, the best takeaway for Gonzaga comes from that young backcourt.

Gonzaga started the game 10-16 from the field. After that they had three droughts with four or more consecutive missed field goals.

It took a while for redshirt freshman point guard Josh Perkins to settle into the game, but once he did he took over. All of his 15 points came in the second half, during which he went 6-8 from the field. At times in the second half he looked ready to single-handedly carry his team to victory.

Unfortunately for the Zags, they had a freshman playing like a veteran but an experienced sophomore playing like a freshman.

Domantas Sabonis fouled out in the final minutes with just two points on the day. He was repeatedly called for offensive fouls in which he seemingly made up his mind to plow through defenders even if they were set. It was a performance reminiscent of Sabons' early games last season in which a lack of composure cost him minutes.

His frontcourt mates played another strong game. Kyle Wiltjer finished with 18 points and seven rebounds. Przemek Karnowski had 10 points and five rebounds.

This is a Gonzaga squad that obviously has a lot of room for growth, specially in the backcourt.

Senior guard Eric McClellan was glued to the bench down the stretch while his replacement, sophomore Silas Melson racked up 28 minutes to his 17.

Up next, on Friday, Gonzaga will face the loser of the other semifinal between Syracuse and Connecticut while the Aggies get the winner.