Townsend, Gonzaga women overwhelm Pepperdine 70-36

SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) Jill Townsend scored 18 points and was one of three players with a double-double and No. 13 Gonzaga had its best defensive game of the season, routing Pepperdine 70-36 on Thursday night to run its winning streak to 17.

Katie Campbell scored 12 points and Jenn Wirth 10 and both matched Townsend's 10 rebounds as the Bulldogs outrebounded the Waves 57-32. It was the first double-double for Campbell.

Melody Kempton also had 12 points for Gonzaga (19-1, 8-0 West Coast Conference), which extended its best-ever start. Jessie Loera had eight assists and moved up to sixth on the career list with 398.

Townsend had seven points as the Bulldogs scored the first nine points of the game and contributed a basket as they closed the quarter on a 10-0 run to lead 20-7.

Hannah Friend had 15 points off the bench for Pepperdine (9-9, 3-5), which was held 20 points below its average after shooting 21.5% (14 of 65). Paige Fecske and Malia Bambrick, who combine for almost 23 points a game, were held to a combined eight on 3-of-19 shooting.

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