SAN BRUNO, Calif. - West Coast Conference Men's Basketball features the rematch between its two teams in top 20 in the latest NET rankings in first-place Saint Mary's (No. 20 in the NET) battling second-place Gonzaga (No. 10 in the NET) this Saturday on ESPN2. The game is one of four national broadcasts this week in WCC men's hoops.
Fast Facts
1
Ryan Nembhard set the WCC's single-season assist record for conference games with 140 on the year.
19.5
In the month of February, Portland's Max Mackinnon leads the West Coast Conference in scoring at 19.5 ppg. He collected 29 points vs. LMU last Saturday.
107
Gonzaga's 107 point total last week against Pepperdine was the second highest in the nation last week and the third-highest total overall this season in the WCC.
WCC Notes
WCC Boasts Five Teams In Top 80 Of NET
The WCC features five teams in the top 80 in the NET currently, an all-time conference best. The WCC also boasts two teams in the top 20, and six in the top 100.
The WCC's five teams in the top 80 in the NET are No. 10 Gonzaga, No. 20 Saint Mary’s, No. 55 Santa Clara, No. 60 San Francisco and No. 77 Oregon State.
Among the WCC's top-80 NET teams, the Conference owns 10 Quad 1 wins this season, four by Saint Mary's, two by Gonzaga and Santa Clara and one by San Francisco and Oregon State.
Saint Mary's is ranked No. 24 in the latest USA Today Coaches Poll and receiving votes in the AP poll. Gonzaga is receiving votes in both national polls.
Four Key Games On TV This Week
WCC hoops will be on national TV four times this week. Three games on the ESPN platform coming up again this week. On Wednesday, Gonzaga is at Washington State at 6 p.m. on ESPN2. On Thursday, LMU is at Santa Clara at 8 p.m. on ESPN2. The third ESPN game is on Saturday is the rematch between Saint Mary’s and Gonzaga in Spokane at 5 p.m. on ESPN2.
Also on Saturday, Santa Clara visits Washington State at 3 p.m. on CBS Sports Network.
WCC Has Featured Many Quad 1 Opportunities This Conference Season
With nearly half the league in the top 70 in the NET rankings, WCC teams are benefiting from having more Quad 1 and 2 opportunities during league play for the first time, enhancing conference strength of schedule. In the month of January, the WCC's five top-70 NET teams collected double the number of Quad 1 opportunities compared to the last two seasons. Each week during West Coast Conference league play this season has given multiple teams opportunities for resume-building key Quad 1 and 2 victories.
WCC Took Care Of Business During Non-Conference
The WCC is No. 7 in both the KenPom and Torvik rankings, and both are the conference's highest ranking since the inception of those metrics. Against non-conference teams this season, the WCC's top-five NET teams compiled a record of 47-18 (.723). According to ESPN, four WCC teams secured top-40 non-conference strength of schedule rankings.
WCC POINTS IN THE PAINT
The WCC POINTS IN THE PAINT men’s basketball podcast made its debut last month. Hosted by Dave Flemming and Sean Farnham, the podcast breaks down the previous week’s action, provides analysis of the games ahead and features a guest each week. This week's episode features Gonzaga head coach Mark Few, who was just named last week as a finalist for the Naismith Hall of Fame, and ESPN College Basketball Analyst Jay Bilas. Full episodes are available on the WCC’s YouTube channel (YouTube.com/WCCsports), as well as Apple and Spotify podcasts. Episodes will come out on Tuesdays during the conference season.
WCC Team Notes
Saturday's matchup between first-place Saint Mary’s and second-place Gonzaga features one of the nation's top offenses vs. one of the nation's top defenses. The Gaels rank fourth defensively in the nation overall (60.5 ppg) and first in conference games (56.6 ppg). Gonzaga's scoring offense ranks No. 2 in the nation (88.0 ppg) and third in conference games (88.7 ppg). When these teams first met earlier this season, SMC prevailed, 62-58, and the Gaels held the Zags to fewer than 60 points, 30 points below the Bulldogs' season scoring average at that time.
In addition to the stellar defense, Saint Mary's remains potent on the boards, as well. The top two rebounders in the West Coast Conference as both Gaels as Paulius Murauskas leads the league at 8.2 rpg and teammate Mitchell Saxen is right behind him at 7.9 rpg.
Murauskas notched another double-double with 30 points and 10 rebounds in last Saturday's win over Washington State. He ranks second in the West Coast Conference and 25th nationally with 10 double-doubles. Gonzaga’s Ryan Nembhard leads the West Coast Conference and ranks 15th in the nation with 11.
Nembhard made history last Saturday, becoming the 51st Division I player to record 800 career assists, and he also set the West Coast Conference single-season record for assists in conference play, currently standing at 140. He is 14 assists shy of the West Coast Conference single-season for assists in overall games.
WCC All-Time Single-Season Assist Leaders
| Place |
Player |
School |
Year |
Assist Total |
| 1. |
Emmett Naar |
Saint Mary's |
2017-18 |
284 |
| 2. |
Terrell Lowery |
LMU |
1990-91 |
283 |
| 3. |
Kyle Collinsworth |
BYU |
2015-16 |
275 |
| 4. |
Ryan Nembhard |
Gonzaga |
2024-25 |
270 |
Nembhard currently leads the nation in assists at 10.0 apg. He is one of four WCC players ranked in the top 26 in the nation in assists - No. 6 Moe Odum, Pepperdine (7.2 apg), No. 17 Augustas Marciulionis, Saint Mary's (6.1 apg) and No. 26 Lamar Washington, Pacific (5.8 apg).
Third-place San Francisco is behind Gonzaga by one loss in the current West Coast Conference standings. The Dons ended last week on a high note with a 23-point win at San Diego. Marcus Williams led the way with 23 points in the win over the Toreros. Malik Thomas remains the Conference scoring leader in scoring at 19.4 ppg. He owns three of the WCC's top six individual scoring totals this season (35, 34, 34).
Santa Clara only played once last week, losing at Saint Mary's, 73-64, last Tuesday. The Broncos were shorthanded in that contest as both of SCU's top two leading scorers Adama-Alpha Bal and Christoph Tilly were injured and did not play in that game. The Broncos still boast the league's second-best scoring offense, averaging 80.3 ppg.
On Saturday, Santa Clara will face the West Coast Conference's third-ranked scoring offense in Washington State. The Cougars are no strangers to injuries this season, as well. WSU fought through the first half of conference play with only eight active players and are still without Cedric Coward who is out for the season after averaging 17.7 points per game prior to his injury. Nate Calmese is averaging 15.8 points per game, fifth in the WCC.