SAN BRUNO, Calif. – A West Coast Conference record seven women’s basketball teams have earned postseason selections.
Gonzaga will represent the conference in the NCAA Tournament, while a conference-record three teams earned Women’s Basketball Invitation Tournament (WBIT) bids with LMU, Oregon State and Santa Clara each selected. Pepperdine, Portland and San Francisco were each selected to the Women’s National Invitation Tournament (WNIT), giving the conference seven total postseason bids. The previous record was six total postseason bids, earned on five occasions (2025, 2022, 2019, 2016 and 2015). Over the past two seasons, the West Coast Conference has earned 13 postseason bids in women’s basketball, the most in any two-year stretch in conference history.
The West Coast Conference earned a league-record three WBIT selections, marking the second consecutive year the conference has earned multiple selections. Among the 20 different conferences represented in the 32-team WBIT field, the West Coast Conference and the Big 12 Conference are the lone conferences to earn at least three bids.
Pepperdine, Portland and San Francisco were selected to the 48-team WNIT field, as the West Coast Conference recorded three selections to the postseason tournament for the fourth time in five years. It is the fifth time in seven years and 18th time overall the conference has earned multiple selections to the event. It is the 10th time the conference has earned at least three bids. The league has earned four bids on three occasions (2015, 2016, 2019).
POSTSEASON SCHEDULE
Thursday features a busy slate of six games. In the WBIT, Oregon State hosts Wisconsin at 6:00 p.m., LMU and Stanford meet at 7:00 p.m. and Santa Clara and Cal face off at 7:00 p.m. Pepperdine hosts UC Davis at 6:00 p.m., San Francisco hosts Utah Valley at 6:00 p.m. and Portland hosts Sam Houston State at 6:00 p.m. in the WNIT. All those games are available on ESPN+. Friday, Gonzaga takes on Ole Miss in the NCAA Tournament at 12:30 p.m. on ESPN2.
GONZAGA BATTLES OLE MISS IN NCAA TOURNAMENT
Gonzaga is a No. 12 seed in the Sacramento 2 Region of the NCAA Tournament and will face No. 5 seed Ole Miss Friday at 12:30 p.m. PT at Williams Arena on the Minnesota campus in Minneapolis. The game will be on ESPN2. Gonzaga is 1-2 all-time against Ole Miss. The two teams last played during the 2023 NCAA Tournament in a first-round matchup at Stanford with the Rebels winning, 71-48.
The Bulldogs earned the West Coast Conference’s automatic qualification after winning the Credit Union 1 West Coast Conference Basketball Championship with a 76-66 victory over Oregon State in the title game. The Bulldogs were the No. 2 seed in the conference tournament, defeating No. 3 seed Santa Clara before the win over Oregon State in the championship game. Gonzaga is 24-9 overall, finishing second in the West Coast Conference with a 14-4 league mark. They rank second nationally in three-point field goal percentage (.390), sixth in in rebounding margin (+11.0), 26
th in assists per game (17.0 apg), and 32
nd in rebounds per game (40.8 rpg), field goal percentage (.454) and free throw percentage (.766).
Gonzaga is making its eighth NCAA Tournament appearance in nine seasons and 16
th overall. Most recently, in the 2024 NCAA Tournament, Gonzaga advanced to the Sweet 16 as a No. 4 seed, defeating UC Irvine and Utah before falling to top seed Texas.
LMU AND PEPPERDINE MAKE RETURN TO THE POSTSEASON
West Coast Conference regular season champion LMU earned a selection to the WBIT, marking its first postseason appearance since 2019 when the Lions played in the WNIT. Pepperdine will also make its first postseason appearance since 2019. That year, the Waves advanced to the WNIT round of 16. Thursday marks the first time Pepperdine is hosting a postseason game in program history.
WEST COAST CONFERENCE AMONG TOP CONFERENCES IN SEVERAL CATEGORIES
The West Coast Conference ranks among the top eight conferences in Division I in eight statistical categories. The league is third among conferences in free throw percentage (.732).
| CATEGORY |
RANK |
STATISTIC |
| Free Throw Percentage |
3 |
.732 |
| Assists Per Game |
6 |
14.5 |
| Field Goal Percentage |
7 |
.413 |
| 3-Point Field Goal Percentage |
7 |
.314 |
| Assist/Turnover Ratio |
7 |
0.90 |
| Assists |
8 |
7,730 |
| Field Goals Made Per Game |
8 |
24.8 |
| 3-Point FGs Made Per Game |
8 |
2,427 |
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 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.
CONFERENCE RECORDS BROKEN
Gonzaga’s Allie Turner set a conference record for free throw percentage during conference games, finishing 45-of-46 (.978) in league action. She is 78-of-82 (.951) from the line overall, which is currently a conference record for free throw percentage in a season.
Gonzaga’s Allie Turner owns a career three-point field goal percentage of .461 (189-of-410) which ranks first on the conference’s career list (minimum 80 three-point field goals). She had career-high nine threes against Saint Mary’s on Feb. 26. Turner is third nationally in three-point field goal percentage this season at .467.
Seattle U’s .833 free throw percentage in conference games this season is the top mark in conference history during league action.
Santa Clara set a conference record with 177 three-pointers made in league games this season. The mark bested the previous record of 160 set by Gonzaga in 2023-24. The Broncos attempted a conference-record 571 three-pointers during league action.
TURN OF THE TIDE
Three teams finished in the top half of the conference regular season standings after bottom-four finishes last season. LMU won the regular season title after finishing ninth last season, the first time any program has achieved such a rise in the league. Santa Clara, in its first year under head coach Loree Payne, was the third seed in the conference tournament after an eighth-place finish in 2024-25. Pepperdine, after a 3-17 conference record and 10th place finish in the standings last year, finished this season with a 10-8 league record, its most conference victories since 2019. The Waves finished sixth in the conference this season.
DISHING OUT DIMES
The West Coast Conference boasts the sixth-highest assist per game average in the nation, at 14.5 assists per contest. Three conference players rank in the top 40 in the nation, including Santa Clara’s Ashley Hawkins (10th, 6.3 apg), Oregon State’s Kennedie Shuler (27th, 5.2 apg) and Pacific’s Daria Nestorov (40th, 4.9 apg). Hawkins’ 121 assists in conference games this season is eighth-best in conference history.
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. She became the fastest active Division I head coach to reach 300 Division I wins, reaching the milestone in her 379th career game, matching LSU head coach Kim Mulkey.
WBIT AND WNIT POSTSEASON TEAMS
LMU
LMU will face No. 2 seed Stanford at Maples Pavilion in Stanford, Calif. Thursday at 7:00 p.m. on ESPN+. LMU captured its second West Coast Conference regular season championship in program history this season, completing the league slate, 15-3. The Lions won their final nine games of the regular season to secure the conference championship. LMU dropped a 73-67 decision to Oregon State in the semifinals of the Credit Union 1 West Coast Conference Basketball Championship.
Aarika Hughes was voted the West Coast Conference Coach of the Year and Jess Lawson was honored as the Conference’s Newcomer of the Year. Lawson (15.1 ppg and 8.3 rpg) and Maya Hernandez (14.4 ppg and 5.5 rpg) were first-team all-conference selections. LMU’s 15 conference wins are the most in program history, breaking the 13 league wins in the 2003-04 season.
LMU is making its first postseason appearance since 2019. It is the Lions’ fourth all-time postseason appearance. This will be LMU’s first appearance in the WBIT. The Lions are 0-2 all-time against Stanford with the two previous meetings occurring in 1987 and 2006.
SANTA CLARA
Santa Clara enters the WBIT 24-9 overall. The Broncos tied for third in the West Coast Conference regular season standings with a 13-5 league mark. They defeated San Francisco to advance to the semifinals of the Credit Union 1 West Coast Conference Basketball Championship, before falling to Gonzaga. Santa Clara ranks sixth nationally in three-point field goals per game (9.5) and sixth nationally in lowest turnovers per game (11.4), eighth in assist/turnover ratio (1.41), ninth in rebounds per game (42.5), 15th in blocks per game (5.3) and 16th in points per game (80.6). Ashley Hawkins, a First Team All-West Coast Conference selection, ranks eighth nationally in assists (207) and 10th in assists per game (6.3). Fellow first-team selection Maia Jones leads the team in scoring at 15.3 ppg.
This is Santa Clara’s second appearance in the WBIT. The Broncos last competed in the 2024 event, where they advanced to the second round. Santa Clara is 2-6 all-time against California with the last meeting coming in Berkeley on Nov. 8, 2023.
OREGON STATE
Oregon State enters the WBIT with a 23-11 overall record. The Beavers finished tied for third in the West Coast Conference regular season with a 13-5 league mark and were the No. 4 seed in the conference tournament. OSU advanced to the Credit Union 1 West Coast Conference Basketball Championship, falling to Gonzaga, 76-66, in the title game. Kennedie Shuler was named the West Coast Conference Defensive Player of the Year. She was among the conference leaders in steals per game (2.0) and blocks per game (0.9) while averaging 12.6 points and 4.8 rebounds per contest. Shuler and teammate Jenna Villa (15.1 ppg and 4.2 rpg) were first-team all-conference selections.
Oregon State is making its third consecutive postseason appearance. The Beavers will be making their first appearance in the WBIT. This will be the first meeting between Oregon State and Wisconsin. It will be the second Big Ten opponent to visit Gill Coliseum this season. On Nov. 14, OSU defeated Illinois, 64-59.
PEPPERDINE
Pepperdine is 19-12 overall, finishing sixth in the conference with a 10-8 league mark. Under second-year head coach Katie Faulkner, Pepperdine improved its conference win total by seven this season and has already won 11 more games than it had the previous season. The 19 wins is the most since the Waves won 22 during the 2018-19 season. Sophomore Elli Guiney was a First Team All-West Coast Conference selection. She leads Pepperdine and ranks ninth in the conference in scoring with a 14.6 ppg average. The Waves are 16th in the nation in defensive rebounds per game (28.9) and 43rd in assists per game (16.0).
PORTLAND
Portland enters the postseason 18-14 overall with an 11-7 conference record. The Pilots were the No. 5 seed in the Credit Union 1 West Coast Conference Basketball Championship where they advanced to the quarterfinals. Portland ranks 11th nationally in blocks per game (5.6), 24th in turnovers forced per game (20.53) and 30th in both assists per game (16.8) and steals per game (11.0). Dyani Ananiev leads the Pilots in scoring at 11.0 ppg.
Portland will make its seventh consecutive postseason appearance and 14th all-time postseason appearance. The Pilots are making their fourth appearance in the WNIT and first since 2022.
SAN FRANCISCO
San Francisco is 18-14 overall. The Dons finished the conference slate 9-9 for seventh place in the conference. USF ranks 51st nationally in assists per game (15.9) and 65th in the country in rebounds per game (39.7). Candy Edokpaigbe was a first-team all-conference selection. She ranks second in the West Coast Conference in scoring at 17.8 ppg.