SAN BRUNO, Calif. – Week three of West Coast Conference league play begins Thursday with five games on the slate. A pair of 3-1 teams in Santa Clara and San Francisco will meet in a Bay Area rivalry on the Hilltop, while about 90 miles east Saint Mary’s and Pacific will meet in Stockton. The first edition of the PCH Cup rivalry between LMU and Pepperdine will take place in Malibu, while San Diego travels to Seattle and Oregon State and Washington State meet in a Pacific Northwest showdown in Pullman.
UNDEFEATED OSU LEADS THE CONFERENCE
At 3-0, Oregon State is the lone team without a loss in conference play. The Beavers have won five straight with an overall record of 11-5. They earned a convincing 81-61 win over Pacific in their conference home opener last Friday thanks to Jenna Villa’s career-high 32 points. Villa became the first Oregon State player to score at least 30 points in a game since 2022.
Santa Clara, Gonzaga, Portland and San Francisco sit right behind Oregon State at 3-1 in conference play.
WEST COAST CONFERENCE AMONG TOP 7 IN 10 CATEGORIES
The West Coast Conference is among the top conferences in Division I in 10 statistical categories. The conference ranks fifth in free throw percentage (.719), sixth in total assists (2,807), assists per game (14.6) and total blocks (608); and seventh in field goal percentage (41.7%), blocks per game (3.57), field goals made (4,744), three-point field goals (1,235), assist/turnover ratio (0.86) and effective field goal percentage (.471).
THREE TEAMS IN THE TOP 80 OF THE NET
Three West Coast Conference teams are in the top 80 of the NET, one of the evaluation tools for NCAA Tournament selection. Santa Clara is at No. 62 with a record of 13-4. Gonzaga is at No. 70 with an 11-6 mark and a pair of Quad 1/2 wins in Marquette and North Dakota State. Oregon State is at No. 77 at 10-5 with a win over Illinois for a Quad 1/2 victory.
FORTIER FASTEST TO 300 DIVISION I WINS
Gonzaga head coach Lisa Fortier earned her 300th career win on Jan. 2 in the Zags’ 85-59 victory at Seattle U. Fortier, in her 12th season as the head coach at Gonzaga, became the fastest active Division I head coach to reach 300 Division I wins. She reached the milestone in her 379th career game, matching the number of games it took LSU head coach Kim Mulkey to earn her 300th career victory.
FORTIER AND MEEK AMONG TOP SIX WINNINGEST ACTIVE DIVISION I HEAD COACHES
Gonzaga’s Lisa Fortier and Portland’s Michael Meek are in the top six in career winning percentage among active Division I head coaches with at least six full years of experience at the Division I level. Fortier is fourth at .790 and Meek is sixth at .780.
WHITTAKER MAKING CASE FOR NATIONAL FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR HONORS
Gonzaga freshman Lauren Whittaker is a candidate for national freshman of the year honors. She was named the U.S. Basketball Writers Tamika Catchings National Freshman of the Week Dec. 23 following another stellar week where she averaged 19.7 points and 12.7 rebounds in three games. Whittaker has captured West Coast Conference Freshman of the Week honors six times already this season, including this past Monday.
Whittaker leads the West Coast Conference in scoring (19.5 ppg), rebounding (9.9 rpg) and field goal percentage (.565). The Gonzaga forward ranks in the top two nationally among freshmen in nine statistical categories. She leads all freshmen in defensive rebounds per game (8.0) field goals made (121), free throws made (70) and double-doubles (8).
SANTA CLARA’S 13-4 START
Santa Clara’s 13-4 start ties the 2023-24 Broncos team for the best start since 2001-02 when the team also started 13-4. The 2023-24 squad earned a WBIT bid and the 2001-02 team made the NCAA Tournament.
SENSATIONAL SOPHIE
Santa Clara forward Sophie Glancey, who was recognized on the Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Preseason Watch List, is in her first year with the Broncos after transferring in from Northern Arizona where she previously played under Loree Payne. Glancey has lived up to her preseason recognition, as she ranks fourth in the conference in rebounding (7.3 rpg), fifth in scoring (15.9 ppg), and third in blocks (2.2 bpg), field goal percentage (.489) and free throw percentage (.841). She owns eight double-doubles on the year. Glancey ranks 16th in the nation in blocks per game (2.19).
HAWKINS WITH THE ASSIST
Ashley Hawkins ranks ninth nationally with 106 total assists and 16th in the country in assists per game at 16.2 apg. She also ranks 16th nationally in assist/turnover ratio (3.03). In the victory over Gonzaga on Sunday, Hawkins dished out 11 assists without turning the ball over.
THREE IN THE TOP 21 IN BLOCKS
Three West Coast Conference teams rank in the top 21 nationally in total blocks. Santa Clara is fourth with 111 blocks, while Portland ranks sixth with 102 blocks and Oregon State is 21st with 83 blocks. Santa Clara (6.53 bpg) ranks sixth and Portland (6.38 bpg) ranks seventh nationally in blocks per game. Oregon State (5.19 bpg) is 21st.
NATION’S BLOCKS LEADER
Portland freshman Julia Dalan leads the nation in blocks (55) and blocks per game (3.44). She had five blocks against Pacific on Sunday, marking her fifth game this season of at least five blocks in a game. She posted a career-best eight blocks against No. 11 USC Nov. 18 and has recorded multiple blocks in 13 of 16 games. Dalan is the fastest Pilot freshman to 50 blocks in a single season.
LAWSON LEADING LIONS IN LEAGUE PLAY
LMU’s Jess Lawson, who is averaging 15.9 points overall, is averaging 20.3 points in conference pay. The guard posted a double-double (16 points and 11 rebounds) at Washington State and netted a career-high 32 against San Francisco.
Lawson’s and Jenna Villa’s 32-point games last week are the most by a West Coast Conference player in a game since Naudia Evans of LMU had 37 against Washington State on Jan. 25, 2025.
SAINT MARY’S DEFENSE
Saint Mary’s has been strong defensively all season. The Gaels held San Diego to 49 points in a 57-49 win last week, marking the sixth time this season Saint Mary’s has held its opponent under 50 points in a game. The Gaels are the conference’s top defensive team, with opponents averaging just 57.1 points per game against SMC.
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.
The Dec. 28 game between Oregon State and San Francisco featured 21 international student-athletes between the two rosters. It was the second-most in a Division I game this season. Two games (South Florida vs. Florida International and Wagner vs. Columbia) featured 22 international student-athletes.
ZAGS CONNECTING FROM DEEP
Gonzaga leads the West Coast Conference and ranks sixth nationally in three-point field goal percentage at 39.2%. Sophomore Allie Turner, who was among the national three-point field goal leaders last season, leads the conference in three-point field goals (46) and three-point field goal percentage (44.7%). Her 46 three-pointers rank ninth nationally.