WEST COAST CONFERENCE MEN'S BASKETBALL WEEKLY NOTEBOOK
SIX TEAMS IN TOP 120 IN THE NET
As of Sunday morning, six West Coast Conference men’s basketball teams standings the top 120 in the latest NET rankings - No. 6 Gonzaga, No. 30 Saint Mary’s, No. 51 Santa Clara, No. 103 San Francisco, No. 119, Seattle U and No. 120 Pacific. In addition, five teams stand inside the top 110 in the latest WAB rankings - No. 7 Gonzaga, No. 27 Saint Mary’s, No. 78 Seattle U, No. 85 Santa Clara and No. 109 Pacific.
TWO TEAMS REMAIN UNBEATEN IN CONFERENCE PLAY
Gonzaga and Saint Mary’s remain undefeated in conference play, both standing at 5-0. Each team played once this week. The Bulldogs defeated Santa Clara, 89-77, in Spokane on Thursday after the Broncos also began the week unbeaten in conference play. Saint Mary’s beat Washington State, 88-82, in Moraga on Saturday.
In the Bulldogs’ win, Graham Ike collected 34 points and 11 rebounds in the win, good for his 10th double-double of the season. Ike ranks tied for fifth in the nation in double-doubles. For the Gaels, three players reached the 20-point mark, led by Joshua Dent and his 26. Paulius Murauskas added 24 while Mikey Lewis notched 20 points.
Saint Mary’s continues to rank inside the top 20 in scoring defense in the nation, currently No. 16, allowing just 64.9 ppg.
BRONCOS REBOUND WITH BIG WIN OVER LMU
Following the loss to Gonzaga, Santa Clara rebounded with a decisive 103-72 win at home over LMU. Freshman Sash Gavalyugov scored 37 points in the win. The 37 points scored are the most by a West Coast Conference player in a conference game this season.
The Santa Clara offense has been on fire in conference play. The Broncos rank fifth in the nation in conference games in scoring at 92.3 ppg. Gonzaga is 12th (89.2).
FOXWELL LEADS THE CHARGE FOR PORTLAND
One of Thursday’s two overtime games, freshman Joel Foxwell led the way for Portland to beat Pacific in OT, 90-89. Foxwell scored a season-best 27 points against the Tigers, and Foxwell has now scored 20 or more points six times and in three of the last five games. He added 18 points in the win over Oregon State on Saturday. Among freshmen nationally, Foxwell is first in assists per game, averaging 7.2
LIONS HOLD OFF DONS IN DOUBLE OT
San Francisco and LMU went to double overtime on Thursday before the Lions won, 84-82. The Lions emerged victorious thanks to the efforts of Jan Vide who scored 23 points with six rebounds and seven assists. USF’s Ryan Beasley scored 32 points with six rebounds and three assists for the Dons.
On Saturday, the Dons got back in the win column with an 80-60 win at Pepperdine. Barry Wang scored 27 points in the win, along with five rebounds. Two Dons garnered double-doubles with Tyrone Riley IV scoring 19 points and collecting 11 rebounds while David Fuchs scored 14 points and pulled down 12 boards.
TIGERS FEND OFF TOREROS
Pacific earned a seven-point win at home over San Diego on Saturday, 77-70. TJ Wainwright led the way with 25 points and 10 rebounds, while Justin Rochelin scored 14 points with 13 rebounds. Despite taking the loss, USD’s Ty-Laur Johnson stayed red hot, scoring 19 points and seven rebounds.
NATIONAL TV GAMES THIS WEEK
West Coast Conference men’s basketball will be on national television twice this week. On Tuesday, San Francisco hosts Saint Mary’s at 8 p.m. on ESPN2. On Thursday, Washington State hosts Gonzaga at 7 p.m. on CBS Sports Network.
WEST COAST CONFERENCE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL WEEKLY NOTEBOOK
BEAVERS, BRONCOS AND BULLDOGS BATTLING AT THE TOP
Through three weeks of conference play, Oregon State is the league’s lone undefeated team at 5-0 and in sole possession of first place in the standings. Santa Clara has won three in a row and is 5-1. Gonzaga bounced back from a loss to the Broncos last week with a convincing win over Portland Saturday to improve to 4-1.
THREE IN THE TOP 75 OF THE NET THROUGH WEEK THREE
Following Saturday’s action, three West Coast Conference teams are in the top 75 of the NET, as Santa Clara sits at 63, Gonzaga moved up to 69 and Oregon State is 74.
DEFENSIVE DOMINANCE KEEPS OREGON STATE UNDEFEATED IN LEAGUE PLAY
Oregon State extended its winning streak to seven games with a pair of wins this week. The Beavers (13-5) are alone atop the conference at 5-0. After a 14-point win over the Washington State Thursday, OSU dominated defensively in Saturday’s win over Seattle U. Oregon State held the Redhawks to just 38 points in a 30-point win. The 38 points is the lowest by an OSU opponent since the Beavers limited Southern to 38 points on Dec. 1, 2022. OSU outscored Seattle U, 40-4, in the paint. Kennedie Shuler finished the Seattle U contest with 18 points, six assists and a career-best seven steals. She was the first Beaver to record at least 10 points, at least five rebounds/steals and at least five assists/blocks in a game in 13 years. Jenna Villa finished the week with 17 points against WSU and 19 points against Seattle U. The Beavers will take their unblemished conference record on the road next week, visiting the LA schools.
BRONCOS OFF TO BEST START IN 25 YEARS FOLLOWING OFFENSIVE EXPLOSION AT WSU
Santa Clara picked up two road wins this week to improve to 15-4 overall, its best start in 25 years. The Broncos' 5-1 start in conference play is their best since also beginning 5-1 during the 2007-08 season.
Santa Clara’s two wins came at San Francisco, 77-67, and a wild, 98-92 affair at Washington State Saturday.
The Broncos and Washington State scored early and often Saturday, with the lead changing several times early before Santa Clara surged ahead and held the advantage well into the third quarter. WSU stormed back to tie it with less than four minutes to go, but the Broncos, who were without star Sophie Glancey for most of the game following an early injury, responded with a run of their own late. Ashley Hawkins sealed it with a rebound and putback with 12 seconds remaining.
Both teams had a trio of 20-point scorers in the contest. Hawkins (26), Maia Jones (23) and Ava Schmidt (career-best 22) led the Broncos, who finished with a season-high 16 three-pointers in Saturday’s win. The 98 points were the most against a Division I opponent since 2019 and the most in a road game since 1991. For Washington State, Eleonora Villa posted a career-high 29 points on six three-pointers, while Charlotte Abraham and Alex Covill had 20 points apiece.
THIRD-QUARTER SURGE PROPELS GONZAGA OVER PORTLAND
In a battle of last year’s regular season co-champions, Gonzaga and Portland, the Zags came out on top, 69-55. Portland jumped out to an early lead, holding Gonzaga to just seven points nearly three minutes into the second quarter. However, Gonzaga erased its deficit and surged out to a double-digit advantage with a 34-point third quarter, its largest point total in a quarter in two seasons. The Zags outscored the Pilots, 34-14, in the period. Freshman Lauren Whittaker collected her ninth double-double of the season with 22 points and 10 rebounds in the win. She leads all freshman nationally in double-doubles.
Notably for Portland in Saturday’s contest, Nicole Anderson finished with a team-high 14 points to reach the 1,000-point milestone in her career.
COUSINS FACE OFF FOR FIRST TIME
Gonzaga’s McKynnlie Dalan and Portland’s Julia Dalan, who are first cousins, faced each other for the first time in their collegiate careers in Saturday’s Gonzaga-Portland contest. Julia recorded eight points, four rebounds and two blocks in 22 minutes. Her two rejections gave her 57 for the year. She is now nine blocks away from the Portland freshman record for blocks in a season. McKynnlie collected a rebound in three minutes of action.
USD EARNS COME-FROM-BEHIND WIN
San Diego rebounded from a setback at Seatle U Thursday with a 54-51 come-from-behind win over Pepperdine at home Saturday for its first league win. The Toreros trailed for more than 30 minutes of the game and were down by eight entering the fourth quarter, but went on a run in the fourth to take the lead on a Hallie Rhodes three midway through the final frame. USD held on for the four-point win. Rhodes led USD with 16 points and six rebounds, while Olivia Owens registered a career-best 11 rebounds and five steals.
LMU IN OT AGAIN
On Thursday, LMU found itself locked in an overtime battle for the third time in its last five games. After falling in its previous two overtime contests, the Lions came out victorious Thursday night with an 83-78 win over Pepperdine in the PCH Cup rivalry. It is LMU’s third win in its last four games. Maya Hernandez led LMU with 21 points, while Andjela Matic matched her career-high with 20 in Thursday’s contest.
DEFENSIVE-MINDED GAELS
Saint Mary’s outscored Pacific 23-8 in the fourth quarter Thursday to erase a 10-point deficit after three periods and defeated the Tigers, 60-55. The defensive-minded Gaels held their ninth opponent this season to 55 points or less. They have won their last two conference games and lead the conference defensively, surrendering 56.9 ppg on average.
WEEK FOUR BRINGS MORE EXCITING MATCHUPS
With week three in the books, attention turns to week four of the season’s Thursday-Saturday slate of games. Thursday’s five-game slate features a matchup in the South Bay between Santa Clara (5-1) and Portland (3-2). Saint Mary’s will host Washington State Thursday before a Bay Area battle against Santa Clara Saturday during a full slate of six games.