Gonzaga overcomes early, late pushes from Kennesaw State to win 17th consecutive NCAA opener

PORTLAND – Emmanuel Innocenti tilted his head back and exhaled. Gonzaga wasn’t in the clear against Kennesaw night when the junior’s 3-pointer dropped through the net with 11 minutes to play, but it felt like an important breakthrough for an offense that had been harnessed much of the night. The defense was solid throughout and the offense eventually came together for the third-seeded Zags, who used scoring runs at the end of the first half and midway through the second to pull away from the 14th-seeded Owls for a 73-64 victory at the Moda Center. The result gave Mark Few’s team its 17th consecutive victory in an NCAA Tournament opener – a run that stretches back to Stephen Curry’s sophomore...