SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. - West Coast Conference men's basketball teams compete this week in multiple-team events (MTEs) over the course of Thanksgiving weekend. No. 3 Gonzaga and Saint Mary's look to remain undefeated.
Fast Facts
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Gonzaga and Saint Mary's are two of 34 remaining unbeaten teams in the nation.
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Five different WCC teams have held opponents to fewer than 50 points in a game this season (Gonzaga, Saint Mary's, San Francisco, Oregon State and Pacific)
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Oregon State ranks tied for 11th in the nation in scoring defense, allowing just 58.3 points per game.
Gonzaga remains ranked No. 3 in the latest Associated Press Top-25 poll. The Bulldogs also rank No. 4 in the latest USA Today Coaches Top-25 poll. Saint Mary's is receiving votes in both national polls for the first team since the preseason rankings.
The WCC ranks fifth among major conferences in free throw percentage (.727), led by Gonzaga's league-leading average of .778 (91-117). Individually, Khalif Battle of the Bulldogs has made all 18 of his free throw attempts. Malik Thomas of San Francisco ranks tied for 13th in the nation with 39 free throws made.
Two WCC boasts two teams in the top 25 nationally in scoring offense led by No. 7 Gonzaga (93.2 ppg). Washington State checks in tied for 25th nationally, averaging 87.7 ppg.
Defensively, in addition to Oregon State ranking 11th in the nation in scoring defense, Gonzaga ranks tied for fourth in the nation in three-point percentage defense, allowing just 22.5 percent of shots made from three-point distance.
Still ranked No. 3 in the latest AP top-25 poll, Gonzaga dominated Long Beach State last week with an 84-41 win on the home court. This week Gonzaga plays in the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament in Paradise Island, Bahamas. The Bulldogs open against West Virginia on Wednesday at 11:30 a.m. They will play either Indiana or Louisville the next day. National honors candidate Ryan Nembhard ranks No. 2 in the nation in assists at 9.4 apg. Gonzaga's +32.2 margin of victory ranks third in the nation.
Defending WCC regular season and tournament champions Saint Mary's remain unbeaten at 6-0 to begin the year, most recently defeating Cal Poly, 80-66, last Saturday. Paulius Murauskas leads the way with four double-doubles this season, while Mitchell Saxen boasts three of us his own. The four double-doubles for Murauskas rank tied for fourth in the nation. This week, the Gaels compete in the Acrisure Classic in Palm Springs. SMC opens against USC on Thanksgiving at 6 p.m. on TruTV.
Washington State's Cedric Coward became the third WCC player this season to reach the 30-point scoring plateau in a win over Northern Colorado. He ranks third in the WCC in scoring at 17.7 ppg.
Pacific's Elias Ralph ranks tied for 24th in the nation with 48 field goals made. Ralph ranks second in the WCC in scoring (17.9 ppg). He owns one of the WCC's three 30-point performances this season.
Pepperdine's Stefan Todorovic continues to lead the WCC in scoring, averaging 20.0 ppg. He has led the Waves in scoring in four of their five games this season, including a 33-point effort against UC San Diego that is a league high and also ranks tied for 16th in the nation. He owns one of the WCC's three 30-point performances this season.
Santa Clara's Christoph Tilly is shooting at a clip of 63.3 percent (31-for-49). He is currently the only player in the WCC shooting over 60 percent. Tilly just missed a double-double in the season-opening win over Saint Louis, notching 17 points and eight rebounds. He was good on six of his seven shot attempts. He scored a season-high 20 points against UC Riverside, connecting on eight of his 10 attempts from the field.