(Photo and story: GOZAGS.com)
Top-seeded Gonzaga fought off a wild Northwestern comeback for a 79-73 victory Saturday night.
Northwestern trimmed a 22-point deficit to five with 4:54 left.
After Nigel Williams-Goss made two free throws, eighth-seeded Northwestern (24-12) - in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history - never got closer.
Williams-Goss led the Zags (34-1) with 20 points, eight rebounds and four assists, while Collins and Jordan Mathews had 14 points each.
Bryant McIntosh, who hit the go-ahead free throws in Northwestern's opening-round win, had 20 for the Wildcats and Vic Law had 18.
BIG MAN SHUFFLE: The Wildcats had more trouble stopping 7-foot-1 Przemek Karnowski's backup than Karnowski himself. The senior missed his first three shots and never got into much of a groove on the way to nine points. His backup, Collins, had 14 points, including back-to-back three-point plays that pushed Gonzaga's lead back to 19 in the second half after it had briefly dropped to 12.
NO ENCORE: For the second straight game, McIntosh had a memorable second half, but it was his first half that made the difference. He shot only 3 for 9 in the first half, part of a 30 percent shooting effort by the Wildcats, who fell behind by as many as 22.
NEXT UP: Gonzaga faces fourth-seeded West Virginia in the West regional semifinal Thursday in San Jose, California. The game tips off at 4:39pm on TBS.