Khalif Battle scored 21 points, Braden Huff added 19 points on 9-of-10 shooting and No. 19 Gonzaga beat Pepperdine 89-82 on Monday night in the West Coast Conference opener for both teams.

Khalif Battle concisely summed up Gonzaga's goal offensively vs. Pepperdine. "Game plan was to attack the rim," Battle said. "Paint points." Gonzaga yielded 50 points in the second half to Pepperdine,

With only a handful of visits remaining to various gyms in the West Coast Conference, Gonzaga can expect the target on its back to grow over the next 24 months as longtime league rivals realize their chances to topple the Bulldogs are probably numbered.

A dominant performance in the paint fueled the Gonzaga Bulldogs past the Pepperdine Waves in their West Coast Conference opener from Firestone Fieldhouse in Mal