SAN BRUNO, Calif. – Ten West Coast Conference programs will be in action across a busy slate of 12 games this weekend as tournaments from the shores of Hawai’i to Florida will see action by conference teams.
Friday’s action features four programs, including LMU and Portland heading to the Hawai’i Classis in Manoa. The Lions will face Hawai’i while the Pilots will take on Idaho State. Seattle U will travel to Boise State for an evening matchup with the Broncos. Oregon State will host Colorado State to cap off the evening.
Sunday will see eight West Coast Conference teams in action. The day’s action begins in Orlando, Florida for the WBCA Showcase where Washington State will take on Missouri at 12:00 p.m. Other tournament action will see LMU and Portland continue to battle it out in Hawai’i, as the Lions will take on Idaho State at 2:00 p.m. and the Pilots take on Hawai’i at 4:30 p.m. Five West Coast Conference teams will host on Sunday, including Gonzaga, Oregon State, Pacific, Pepperdine and Santa Clara.
UNDEFEATED BEAVERS
Oregon State is undefeated on the year at 4-0. The Beavers downed Big Ten Foe Illinois at home on Friday and earned a 19-point victory over Utah State on Tuesday. The Beavers host Colorado State Friday and Long Beach State on Sunday before heading to the Paradise Jam in the U.S. Virgin Islands next week.
BOLDEN LEADS OSU, CONFERENCE
Oregon State senior Tiara Bolden, after a hot week last week, took it to another level. Bolden leads the West Coast Conference in scoring at 21.0 points per game after a career-high 25 points against Illinois last Friday. The conference player of the week is also averaging 7.0 rebounds per contest.
EYEING WIN NO. 200
Washington State head coach Kamie Ethridge is one win away from No. 200 for her career. She owns a 199-153 overall record in her 12th season as a head coach. Ethridge owns 116 wins in her eighth year at WSU.
INTERNATIONAL INFLUENCE
The West Coast Conference has the greatest percentage of international student-athletes of any Division I conference in the nation. Overall, 44.1 percent of rostered student-athletes across the 12 women’s basketball programs in the West Coast Conference are from outside of the United States. There is a total of 71 international student-athletes on rosters in the West Coast Conference this season. San Francisco boasts the most with 11 international student-athletes from eighth different countries. Oregon State has10 international student-athletes of its 15 from six different countries. Washington State has nine international student-athletes from eight different countries.
GAELS HISTORIC START
Saint Mary’s is off to its best start in a decade with a 5-1 record. The Gaels rank 13th in the nation defensively, limiting opponents to 49.2 points per game. They are forcing an average of 19.8 turnovers per contest. Saint Mary’s will travel to Frisco, Texas this coming Tuesday for a matchup with Big Ten foe Oregon in the Hoopsfest Challenge.
PEPPERDINE MAKING WAVES
Pepperdine’s Shorna Preston leads the conference in rebounding with an average of 9.0 boards per game. She has guided the Waves to a 3-1 start. The Waves are averaging 73.5 points per game.
ZAGS OFFENSE STAYS HOT
Gonzaga redshirt freshman Lauren Whittaker continues her hot start. She ranks fifth in the Conference in scoring at 16.2 points per game and is second in the league in rebounding at 8.2 per contest. She is third in the conference with a 56.9 percent for the season. Her 29 points against Colorado State on Nov. 13 are the most in a game in the Conference this season. She is just the third freshman in program history to score at least 29 points in a game.
The Zags rank 18th in the nation in three-point field goal percentage, connecting on 39.5 percent of their attempts with 34 three-points so far this season.
WCC BIG ON DEFENSE
Santa Clara’s Sophie Glancey ranks eighth in the nation in blocks at 3.0 per game. She has 18 on the season. Portland’s Julia Dalan ranks third in the nation with 3.5 blocks this season and 14 total blocks on the season so far. After three blocked shots in the game against Seton Hall, Pacific’s Sydney Ward is just three blocks away from moving into the Tigers’ top-10 in career blocks. The senior guard has 70 in her four years at Pacific.
TURNER, GLANCEY ON PLAYER OF THE YEAR WATCH LIST
Gonzaga’s Allie Turner and Santa Clara’s Sophie Glancey are each on the preseason watch list for the Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year. The preseason watchlist includes 25 individuals across 12 conferences.