Saint Mary’s and Gonzaga Claim Top Seeds in WCC Tourney

Saint Mary’s (17-1, 27-4)

Saint Mary’s finished their regular season with two solid wins against Loyola Marymount and Oregon State.

These are formidable results considering the Gaels had already won the WCC Regular Season championship and could’ve lost focus.

Against the Lions, the Gaels held a 12-point lead with 11:30 to go.

LMU cut the deficit to five, but Luke Barrett hit a pivotal three to extend the lead to eight. Loyola Marymount continued to claw, but SMC held onto a three-point dub.

Paulius Murauskas led the Gaels with 18 points and 12 rebounds. Harry Wessels chipped in nine points and eight rebounds.

On Saturday, the Beavers played the Gaels tough for most of the first half, but Saint Mary’s went on an 18-6 run before the break, taking a multi basket lead.

OSU cut the lead to two with 8:40 to play, but SMC went on a 9-0 tilt and took the game from there.

The trio of seniors Augustas Marciulionis, Mitchell Saxen, and Luke Barrett combined for 50 points.

Saint Mary’s will try to repeat as WCC Tournament champs as the No. 1 seed.

Notes:

• Augustas Marciulionis has won the WCC Player of the Year award for the past two seasons.
• Mitchell Saxen holds the all-time record for games played for the Gaels at 152 contests.
• Luke Barrett started as a walk-on for SMC, earning his scholarship before his redshirt sophomore year in 2022-23.

Gonzaga (14-4, 23-8)

Gonzaga has had a disappointing season, but this could be the year they win it all.

The Bulldogs feature a dominant point guard-center combination in Ryan Nembhard and Graham Ike, which gives them a chance in any matchup.

Last week, they rolled over Santa Clara and San Francisco on the road, which are solid victories. Against the Broncos, the Zags struggled until they went on a 10-0 run to end the first half.

They found their rhythm in the final 20 and won by 19 points. Graham Ike scored 24 points while shooting 11-13 from the floor.

Ryan Nembhard broke the WCC all-time single-assists record in the game, tying his career high with 15 assists.

On Saturday, GU whipped the Dons, streaking to a 20-point victory. Ben Gregg led the way for the Bulldogs with 23 points and eight rebounds. Nolan Hickman chipped in 17.

Most programs would have celebrated last week’s wins, but not Gonzaga. It’s time for redemption.

Notes:

• Ryan Nembhard is the only player in the country averaging a points-assists double-double (10. 9 PPG and 10.1 AST).
• Graham Ike leads the Bulldogs, averaging 17.0 points and 7.4 rebounds.
• GU leads the nation in assists per game, averaging 19.9.

Oregon State (10-8, 20-11)

Oregon State had a tough week to end their regular season. The Beavers lost a heartbreaker against San Francisco on Wednesday and fell to Saint Mary’s on Saturday.

Those two losses may have eliminated OSU from the NCAA Tournament unless they win the WCC Conference Tourney.

On Wednesday, the Beavs were in a close matchup until the final seconds.

The game featured a 14-0 run by the Dons in the first half, but Oregon State responded with their own run 8-0 in the second to make it a one-point contest.

Parsa Fallah tied the game as time expired, but the shot left his hand with three zeros on the clock. Fallah finished with 24 points and shot 11-13 from the field.

On Saturday, the Beavs played Saint Mary’s tough until the 8:30 mark in the second half. The Gaels took control of the contest the rest of the way.

Liutauras Lelevicius stepped up for OSU, finishing with 12 points and eight rebounds.

The Beavers enter the WCC tournament as the No. 5 seed.

Notes:

• Parsa Fallah led Oregon State in scoring both games this week, posting 38 combined points.
• Michael Rataj led the Beavers in both scoring and rebounds this season with 17.4 PPG and 7.5 REB.
• OSU made the Elite Eight in 2020-21.

Washington State (8-10, 18-13)

Washington State ended its campaign on a high note after a confusing season. The Cougs finally found their rhythm last week, snagging two wins over Pepperdine and San Diego.

On Saturday, the Cougars went on a 20-4 run, not a 4-20 run, and took a 14-point lead midway through the second half.

Washington State secured this lead for the remainder of the contest and won the game by seven points.

Dane Erikstrup led the Cougs with 15 points and 12 rebounds. Ethan Price added 15, including three treys.

Against the Toreros, WSU had a Senior Night explosion, scoring 59 first-half points and putting the game away in the process.

SD scored 61 points in the second, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the Cougs’ 28-point first-half advantage.

Washington State started the year hot before stumbling down the stretch. The Cougars ended their regular season slate losing seven out of their last ten games.

They’ll play on Saturday as the No. 6 seed in the WCC Tournament.

Notes:

• Washington State is 13-1 when scoring 80 or more points.
• ND Okafor set his career high for the Cougars with 13 points in their win against Pepperdine.
• WSU graduated three seniors, all three of whom transferred with David Riley from Eastern Washington (Cedric Coward, Dane Erikstrup, Ethan Price).