WEST COAST CONFERENCE MEN'S BASKETBALL WEEKLY NOTEBOOK
NEAR-PERFECT WEEKEND
West Coast Conference men’s basketball teams went 10-1 this weekend. The .909 winning percentage was the best winning percentage among all Division I conferences in games played this weekend (Friday through Sunday).
On Friday, Saint Mary’s improved to 10-2 on the year with an 88-75 victory at home over Florida Atlantic (NET No. 104). Seattle U battled in-state foe Washington (NET No. 58) at Climate Pledge Arena and hung on for a 70-66 victory, a Quad 2 win. The Redhawks are now 10-2 on the year and are enjoying a five-game winning streak. Another in-state battle saw San Diego face future conference opponent UC San Diego (NET No. 66) on the road. Ty-Laur Johnson nailed a three-pointer at the buzzer to give the Toreros a Quad 1 win over the Tritons, 82-80.
On Sunday, Oregon State beat Arizona State (NET No. 57) on the road, 78-75. Josiah Lake II dished out nine assists to go along with 23 points in the win over the Sun Devils. No. 7 Gonzaga topped Oregon (NET No. 113), 91-82, in Portland. Graham Ike collected 17 points and 11 rebounds for his seventh double-double of the season.
FIVE IN NET TOP 100
Five West Coast Conference men’s basketball teams are currently ranked in the NET’s top 100, as of Sunday morning. Gonzaga leads the way at No. 3, followed by No. 27 Saint Mary’s, No. 88 Santa Clara, No. 94 Seattle U and No. 100 Pacific.
REDHAWKS ON FIRE
As Seattle U concludes non-conference play against UTSA on Monday, the Redhawks’ current five-game winning streak is the longest since the 2022-23 season (8 consecutive). The 10-2 start is the best since 1966-67 when SU started 11-2. This is Seattle U’s best start in the modern D1 era as the previous best start was 8-2 in 2022-23. The Redhawks went on to win the WAC championship that season.
TIGERS PERFECT AT HOME
Pacific is 5-0 in home games this season and the Tigers wrapped up non-conference play with a 95-82 win over Nicholls on Sunday. Finishing non-conference play at 9-4, this season marks the highest non-conference win total for the Tigers since they won 12 in 2019-20. Elias Ralph scored 25 points in the win over Nicholls, his 24th career 20-point performance.
AMEY JR. FOR THREE
LMU’s Myron Amey Jr. connected on nine of his 14 three-point attempts in the Lions’ win over North Alabama on Friday. That total is tied for ninth-best among single-game ranks in the nation this season. Amey Jr. leads the league in three-pointers made per game (3.2) and is second in percentage (.388), behind his teammate Rodney Brown Jr. (.394).
GAELS SET TO HOST NORTHERN IOWA
Tomorrow night, Saint Mary’s hosts Northern Iowa in Moraga. UNI currently stands at No. 84 in the NET. The game will feature two of the nation’s best scoring defenses as Northern Iowa sits at second in the country, allowing 57.6 ppg. Saint Mary’s is 21st nationally in scoring defense (64.8 ppg). The game be seen on ESPN+ at 7 p.m. Joshua Dent looks to keep his momentum rolling after matching his career-high of 24 points against Florida Atlantic, while amassing a career-best seven rebounds with six assists in the win.
CONFERENCE PLAY STARTS NEXT SUNDAY
Following five more non-conference games, conference play starts on Dec. 28 with all 12 teams in action. The first conference game of the 2025-26 campaign features Washington State heading to Portland at 2 p.m. San Diego hosts Pacific at 3 p.m. while Oregon State hosts Santa Clara also at 3 p.m. In later games, Saint Mary’s treks to LMU at 4 p.m. The two 5 p.m. games will see Gonzaga at Pepperdine and San Francisco at Seattle U. All games will be broadcast on ESPN+.
WEST COAST CONFERENCE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL WEEKLY NOTEBOOK
BEST START IN 45 YEARS FOR PEPPERDINE
Pepperdine, with an entirely new roster this season, collected two more wins this week and finished non-conference play 9-3 overall for the program’s best start in 45 years. The Waves, who defeated South Dakota and CSUN, nearly won all three of their contests this week. They traded leads with North Dakota State (NET 46) in their Malibu Classic opener on Tuesday, dropping a two-point decision in overtime.
Meghan Fiso averaged 15 points, 5.7 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game in the three contests this week. She had a career-high 19 points in the victory over South Dakota. Shorna Preston was a major contributor as well this week, averaging 8.3 points and 10.3 rebounds per game.
SURGING SAINT MARY’S POSTS MOST NON-C0NFERENCE WINS IN 12 YEARS
Saint Mary’s earned a double-digit win over New Mexico State (70-59) on Saturday for its fourth straight victory. The Gaels completed their non-conference slate 9-4, recording their most wins in non-conference play since the 2013 season. Bench scoring was the difference in Saturday’s win, as Saint Mary’s out-scored New Mexico State, 34-3. The Gaels’ defense was solid yet again in the win, as they forced a season-high 27 turnovers. They held their opponent under 60 points for the ninth time in 13 games this season.
ZAGS STAY PERFECT ON THE ROAD
Gonzaga improved to 4-0 in true road games this season with victories at Missouri State on Friday and UC Riverside on Sunday. The Zags also own wins at North Dakota State and Toledo. They nearly made it a perfect 3-0 on the week, with a Tuesday tussle with Arizona State in Spokane. Gonzaga came up just short of handing Arizona State its first loss of the season as Allie Turner’s game-winning three-point attempt from the corner went off the rim and out as time expired.
WHITTAKER CONTINUES TO MAKE CASE FOR NATIONAL FRESHMAN HONORS
Gonzaga freshman Lauren Whittaker continues to make a case for National Freshman of the Year honors. The forward, who has already won three West Coast Conference Freshman of the Week awards, is second in the nation in scoring among freshmen at 19.5 points per game. Her 9.3 rebounds per game is seventh-best among freshmen in the country. Whittaker recorded two more double-doubles this week with 19 points and 16 rebounds at Missouri State and 16 points and 13 rebounds at UC Riverside. The freshman averaged 19.7 points and 12.7 rebounds for Gonzaga’s three games this week.
BRONCOS FINISH NON-CONFERENCE PLAY WITH 10 WINS – ALL BY DOUBLE DIGITS
Santa Clara earned an 84-72 win at North Texas on Sunday, as the Broncos finished non-conference play 10-3. All 10 non-conference wins were by double digits. This is the third time in program history the Broncos have won 10 or more non-conference games by double digits. The 10 non-conference wins are the most by a first-year Bronco head coach in program history. Loree Payne is in her first-year coaching Santa Clara following a successful tenure as the head coach at Northern Arizona.
SHULER SHINES AS BEAVERS TAKE MAUI CLASSIC TITLE
Oregon State defeated Montana State and Liberty over the weekend to earn the Maui Classic title. Kennedie Shuler scored a career-best 21 points in the 64-57 victory over Liberty on Saturday. She also had nine points and a game-high seven assists in OSU’s 53-51 victory over Montana State on Friday. For her efforts, Shuler was voted the Most Valuable Player of the Maui Classic.