The Gonzaga men's basketball team left little doubt after defeating No. 8 Baylor 101-63 on the opening night of the college basketball season at Spokane Arena.

Led by Nolan Hickman's 17 points, the Bulldogs (1-0) rained down 13 3-pointers on the Bears (0-1) and shot 57.1% from the field. Four other players scored in double figures, including Dusty Stromer (11 points) and Braden Huff (14 points). The two second-year players provided a spark for Gonzaga off the bench as they combined to score 17 straight points midway through the first half.

Baylor was led by fifth-grader Norchad Omier with 15 points and nine rebounds. Freshman wing Robert Wright III had 12 points, although the Bears shot just 37.1% from the field and 3 of 21 from deep.

Here's what Gonzaga head coach Mark Few had to say after the team's 19th straight season-opening win.

On the significance of the season opener against the Bears:

“There are two teams with two willing coaches. We had different locations around the world trying to make the whole thing happen and then fortunately the Spokane Arena was able to accommodate us and it was a great spectacle there with the crowd. And I'm sure it was a great show for everyone watching on TV. I wish we could have gotten an earlier TV time… but again, we're trying to send the message that these games are important and we need to somehow bring college basketball to the forefront instead of waiting until March.”

On Gonzaga's execution:

“We fielded 100 players today for a great and somewhat scary team. I mean, they're really, really, really athletic and can do a lot of different things on defense, mix it all up. And I thought it was a game where every screen changes, which sometimes takes away the rhythm a little. Our guys made the right reads, made the right plays and got good results, and they got great results. You get another really, really good shot, two more swings to an open 3, especially in those corners. And those guys, especially Nolan and Dusty, really opened the way for us midway through the first half.”

On slowing down Baylor's Norchad Omier and VJ Edgecombe:

“I mean it's going to be a very tough matchup with (Omier) in the team and the way he rebounds the ball is a big concern for them. I thought they did a far better job than we did, obviously against USC, balancing the guys and helping each other out. We had gaps, we made some nice plays with the ball. So they did a great job of taking the message after that performance and executing it, because you can't guard these guys one-on-one, we really had to be in our gap defense.”

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