SAN BRUNO, Calif. – Gonzaga women's basketball head coach Lisa Fortier is the featured guest on this week's edition of the WCC POINTS IN THE PAINT women's basketball podcast with hosts Mary Murphy and Ann Schatz.
Gonzaga has won four straight and currently part of a five-way tie for first place in the WCC standings. Gonzaga hosts Portland on Thursday night before heading to LMU on Saturday.
Murphy and Schatz discuss the craziness of the current five-way tie for first place in the WCC standings and the importance of winning at home in situations like this.
They also discuss the impact of USF losing Debora dos Santos for the season and how the Dons can continue to win without her.
Timestamps are listed below for efficient viewing:
0:25 - The impact of the tragedy of the Southern California fires
"I can't go too many places without talking to somebody who knows someone that's been displaced. I know the winds are going to continue to pick up this week, so we'll just hope for the best and know that at some point there will be better days ahead," - Mary Murphy
2:52 - The five-way tie for first place in the WCC
"It's something that's really quite epic and not happening anywhere else in the country. What this speaks to is the parity in the conference so far this year." - Mary Murphy
4:14 - The impact of the injury to USF's Debora dos Santos
7:50 - Scoreboard watching with so many good teams and close games
"For every team in every game, we've never seen a conference season like this and it's only going to get more intense and more interesting as we continue down the road." - Mary Murphy
9:00 - Murphy and Schatz look at Gonzaga's season up to this point
10:10 - Gonzaga head coach Lisa Fortier joins the show
"I don't know if it's the season, or if it's December or January, or if it's cancer, it's hard to tell, it's probably a little bit of all things in the fatigue but I'm feeling very good." - Lisa Fortier
"This is what I love doing. I love being around the players. I love coaching basketball. If ever there was a time to focus in on what you love and what you're passionate about, now is that time." - Lisa Fortier
13:55 - On Yvonne Ejim
"She has continued to improve in all areas. She's improved as a basketball player, of course, but as a leader, she's changed her entire demeanor. When she was younger, she was very up and down. She was inconsistent. She's grown so much and is as steady a person as you could have around your program." - Lisa Fortier
21:15- Top players from last week
23:25 - On this week's games
"With this many teams playing as closely as they are, it's going to come down to who did you beat, how many times did you beat them, did you beat the teams above you, did you beat the teams below you? Every opportunity to get a win is absolutely important." - Mary Murphy
To watch the complete episode, click
here.
Full episodes of both the WCC POINTS IN THE PAINT Women’s Basketball Podcast and Men’s Basketball Podcast will be available on the WCC’s YouTube channel, as well as Apple and Spotify podcasts. Fans can also find clips of each show on the WCC basketball X account, @WCChoops, as well as the Conference’s Facebook, Instagram and TikTok channels and @WCCsports with links to the full episode.