SAN BRUNO, Calif. – The race for the West Coast Conference women’s basketball regular season title and top seed in the upcoming Credit Union 1 West Coast Conference Basketball Championship is heating up with two weeks remaining on the schedule.
Gonzaga and LMU are tied for first place in the standings at 11-3 after the Lions’ victory over the Bulldogs in Los Angeles last week. Four teams are separated by just one game at the top of the standings, as Oregon State and Santa Clara are tied for third place at 10-4. Portland is within reach in fifth place with a 9-5 record.
Oregon State hosts Portland in a battle of Pacific Northwest powers to highlight Thursday’s conference action. Gonzaga hosts Washington State, Pacific hosts San Francisco, LMU travels to Seattle U, San Diego heads to Malibu to face Pepperdine and Santa Clara and Saint Mary’s meet in a Bay Area battle in the South Bay as part of the full slate of games Thursday. All games are set for 6 p.m. PT on ESPN+.
Looking ahead to the final day of the regular season (Feb. 28), Portland will host Gonzaga on ESPNU and Oregon State will host LMU on ESPN+ in a battle among the conference’s top teams.
LIONS ROAR TO THE TOP
LMU defeated Gonzaga in Los Angeles last week for its fifth straight win and ninth in its last 10 games to move into a tie with the Bulldogs for first place in the conference. It was LMU’s first win over Gonzaga since 2008 (snapped a 36-game losing streak). The 11-3 conference record is the Lions’ best start to conference play since starting 13-1 in the 2003-04 season. The 11 league wins are LMU’s most since the 2017-18 season. The Lions are 17-8 overall, their most wins since the 2018-19 season (18).
WHITTAKER LONE FRESHMAN SEMIFINALIST FOR BECKY HAMMON MID-MAJOR PLAYER OF THE YEAR AWARD
On Wednesday, Gonzaga redshirt freshman Lauren Whittaker was named a semifinalist for the Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Award, presented by Her Hoop Stats. Whittaker, the only freshman among the award’s 10 semifinalists, is one of just two freshmen to be named a semifinalist in the award’s history. A freshman has never won the award. The five finalists for the award will be announced in early March, with the winner announced around the Final Four.
WHITTAKER MAKES CASE FOR NATIONAL FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR HONORS
Lauren Whittaker is making a strong case for national freshman of the year honors. The forward leads the conference in scoring (19.1 ppg), rebounding (10.1 rpg) and field goal percentage (.549). She leads all freshmen nationally and is tied for 15th overall with 13 double-doubles on the season. Whittaker is 21st nationally in total points (517) and 26th in the country in points per game. The forward is 13th nationally in total rebounds (273) and 23rd in the country in rebounds per game. Whittaker also ranks 14th nationally in defensive rebounds per game (7.9), 20th in field goals made (192) and 29th in field goal percentage.
Whittaker, who was recognized in November as a Kay Yow Servant Leader, ranks in the top three among freshmen nationally in nine categories. Along with double-doubles, she ranks first nationally among freshmen in field goal percentage. The forward is second among freshmen nationally in points, points per game, rebounds, defensive rebounds per game and field goals made. She is third among freshmen nationally in free throws made and defensive rebounds.
Whittaker has been named the West Coast Conference Freshman of the Week 11 times this season. She owns 12 conference weekly awards overall, also earning conference player of the week honors Dec. 22. Whittaker was named the U.S. Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) Tamika Catchings National Freshman of the Week Dec. 23.
WEST COAST CONFERENCE RANKS AMONG THE TOP CONFERENCES IN SEVERAL CATEGORIES
The West Coast Conference ranks among the top eight conferences in Division I in five statistical categories. The league is third among conferences in free throw percentage (.727) behind the Big Ten and Big 12.
| CATEGORY |
RANK |
STATISTIC |
| Free Throw Percentage |
3 |
.727 |
| Assists Per Game |
6 |
14.6 |
| 3-Point FG Percentage |
7 |
.315 |
| Field Goals Made Per Game |
8 |
24.8 |
| Assist/Turnover Ratio |
8 |
0.90 |
LMU PICKING UP THE PACE
LMU is averaging more than nine points per game in its last 12 games. After averaging 66.3 points per contest in its first 13 games, the Lions are averaging 75.8 ppg over their last 12. They are shooting 44.5 percent from the field over their last 12 contest
30-POINT PERFORMANCES AMONG ACTIVE PLAYERS
There have been six 30-point performances by conference players this season. Most recently, Oregon State’s Kennedie Shuler scored a career-best 31 points against Pacific last Saturday. She shot 63.2 percent (12-of-19) from the field without attempting a three pointer. Gonzaga’s Lauren Whittaker has the highest single-game total in the conference this season with 37 points to go along with 14 rebounds against Oregon State Jan. 22. Whittaker’s performance is one of two 30-point double-doubles this season, as San Diego’s Olivia Owens registered 31 points and 12 rebounds against Washington State Feb. 5. Oregon State’s Jenna Villa is the lone active conference player with multiple 30-point games in her career in the West Coast Conference, with both performances coming this season – 32 points against Pacific Jan. 2 and 31 points against Gonzaga Jan. 22. LMU’s Jess Lawson posted 32 points and nine rebounds against San Francisco Jan. 4.
Last season, there were 11 performances of 30 points or more. There are two active conference players with 30-point performances in previous seasons – LMU’s Maya Hernandez scored 33 points against South Dakota Nov. 13, 2024 and Maia Jones, who previously played for Saint Mary’s before transferring to Santa Clara, scored 31 points for the Gaels against Pepperdine on Feb. 17, 2024.
DISHING OUT DIMES
The West Coast Conference boasts the sixth-highest assist per game average in the nation, at 14.6 assists per contest. Four conference players rank in the top 50 in the nation in assists per game, including Santa Clara’s Ashley Hawkins (12th, 6.1 apg), Oregon State’s Kennedie Shuler (27th, 5.4 apg), Pacific’s Daria Nestorov (40th, 5.0 apg) and Portland’s Rhyan Mogel (49th, 4.8 apg).
Three conference programs are in the top 50 in the nation in assists per game average – Portland (27th, 17.3), Gonzaga (29th, 17.2) and Santa Clara (42nd, 16.4).
MINDERMANN ONE OF SEVEN TRUE FRESHMEN WITH AT LEAST 2.1 THREES PER GAME
Pacific’s Sophia Mindermann is one of seven true freshmen averaging at least 2.1 three-pointers per game this season. Mindermann is 52-of-146 from beyond the arc on the season, connecting on 35.6 percent of her three-point attempts. The 52 three-pointers is 10th among true freshmen.
JESS LAWSON'S ?IMPACT
??LMU’s Jess Lawson, the West Coast Conference Player of the Week this week, is one of nine players nationally averaging at least 14.5 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.0 steals per game this season. She is coming off 16-point, seven-rebound and career-best seven-steal performance in the win over Gonzaga.
ZAGS AND REDHAWKS AMONG BEST IN NATION IN SHOOTING
Gonzaga is third in the nation in three-point field goal percentage, shooting 38.6 percent from beyond the arc. The Zags have connected on 194 of 502 attempts. Sophomore Allie Turner is 11th in the nation, shooting 45.5% (65-of-143) from deep. Seattle U is fourth in the country in free throw shooting percentage, shooting 80.2% (271-of-338) from the line this season. Turner leads the nation in free throw percentage at 95.8% (68-of-71).
AWARDS WATCH LISTS
The West Coast Conference has been represented on several watch lists for major awards. On Wednesday, Gonzaga’s Lauren Whittaker was the lone freshman named as a semifinalist for the Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year award. On Jan. 27, Portland’s Julia Dalan, one of the nation’s leaders in blocks per game, was named to the midseason watch list for the Naismith Women’s College Defensive Player of the Year Award. On Jan. 28, Gonzaga’s Lisa Fortier was named to the midseason watch list for the Kathy Delaney-Smith Mid-Major Coach of the Year Award.
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% of rostered student-athletes across the 12 programs are from outside of the U.S. There are 71 international student-athletes on rosters in the conference this season. San Francisco boasts the most with 11 international student-athletes from eight different countries. OSU has 10 student-athletes from six countries. WSU has nine student-athletes from eight countries. The matchups between OSU and USF on Dec. 28th and Jan. 31st featured 21 international student-athletes between the two rosters. It is the second-most in a Division I game this season.