No surprise: Gonzaga, Saint Mary’s renew rivalry with a lot on the line in WCC race
Saint Mary’s center Mitchell Saxen looks to pass against Gonzaga forward Graham Ike during the second half of the West Coast Conference Tournament championship game on March 12 at Orleans Arena in Las Vegas. Saint Mary’s defeated the Zags 69-60. (TYLER TJOMSLAND/THE SPOKESMAN-REVIEW)
MORAGA, Calif. – Gonzaga vs. Saint Mary’s.
Time for the game of the year in the West Coast Conference. At least until the WCC powers square off again Feb. 22 in the Kennel or, as they seemingly do every March in Las Vegas, with another clash at the conference tournament.
Just like every season and practically every series meeting over the past decade-plus. Same as it ever was.
About the only thing that’s different is neither team is ranked – a rarity for Gonzaga – but that could change for Saturday’s winner at cozy University Credit Union Pavilion when the AP rankings are released Monday.
Gonzaga still plays fast, ranking first nationally in assists and near the top in points per game and field-goal percentage. Saint Mary’s still is defensive-minded and prefers lower scores.
Cue the coaches’ mutual admiration comments.
“You can’t turn it over and you can’t give ’em transition (baskets),” Saint Mary’s Randy Bennett said. “Gonzaga, you have to guard everything. They have a very good inside attack and they will bring that. We can’t give ’em easy baskets.”
“They’re still playing the same way, I think 350th in pace of play,” Gonzaga’s Mark Few said. “They know who they are and they don’t beat themselves. It’s a great recipe and Randy has figured it out. I think people are figuring out he’s one of the best coaches in college basketball and he’s built a heck of program.”
Saturday is meaningful for numerous reasons, both in the WCC standings and supplementing their NCAA Tournament credentials. Saint Mary’s (19-3, 9-0) holds a two-game edge over GU (16-6, 7-2) as the Gaels chase their second straight outright regular-season title.
The Gaels rattled off 26 unanswered points while holding Santa Clara scoreless in the first 10 minutes of the second half en route to a 67-54 road win Wednesday. It gave the Gaels their first Quad 1 win and moved them up to No. 21 in the NET. SMC is 1-1 in Quad 1 and 5-2 vs. Quad 2.
No. 11 Gonzaga clobbered Oregon State 98-60 on Tuesday, avenging an overtime loss in Corvallis. A win over the Gaels would give the Zags their first Quad 1 win since beating San Diego State on Nov. 18 and make the WCC race interesting over the final month of the regular season. GU is 2-5 in Quad 1 and 3-1 in Quad 2.
Both teams fall in the 8 to 10 seed range in most NCAA Tournament projections. They’ve split the past eight series games, but GU is 26-7 in the past 33.
The Zags have scored at least 70 points in their past 11 series victories. In their four losses in that time , they’ve scored 60, 62, 57 and 70 in an eight-point overtime loss in Moraga in 2023. Meanwhile, the Gaels are 18-0 this season when scoring at least 70 points. They’ve held eight WCC opponents to 60 points or less. Only Washington State, in an 80-75 loss, has scored above 60.
The Gaels are seventh nationally in scoring defense (61) and third in rebounding margin (11.2). Senior Mitchell Saxen ranks No. 1 in offensive rebounding (4.36 per game).
“It’s really just staying mentally and physically locked into the game, and (being) mature,” Gonzaga post Graham Ike said of playing the Gaels. “Not letting all that get us out of our game and our head space, just staying dialed in. We know it’s going to be a physical matchup, we know they’re going to ride under us on our shots. We just have to continue to stay strong, have a good base and power through that.”
The Gaels have similar plans.
“Just compartmentalize,” Saxen said. “Everybody’s going to hype it up as a big game, but at the end of the day, it gets down to doing what we call our musts, and that’s playing hard for 40 minutes, knowing our job, doing our job just over and over again. That’s why we’ve been able to beat them sometimes in the past, but it doesn’t make it any easier the next time around. They’ve got a ton of good players and they’re a well-coached program, so we know it’s going to be a battle.”
In addition to Saxen, the Gaels lean on 2024 WCC Player of the Year Augustas Marciulionis (13.6 points, 5.7 assists), Arizona transfer forward Paulius Murauskas (13.1 points, 8.9 boards) and wing Luke Barrett (10.5 points, 6.8 rebounds).
“It’s just kind of rinse, lather, repeat,” Few said of SMC. “Any time (Bennett) has his point guard (Marciulionis) and his big (Saxen), he can fill in the spots. They went out and got (former GU assistant Tommy Lloyd’s guy (Murauskas) from Arizona. He’s been really scoring and rebounding the ball well.
“They’ve done a great job with development. Luke Barrett’s now scoring and shooting and gives you all those hustle plays and kind of those gritty plays. And some other guys that have been in the program are making 3s.”
Fans will be in for a treat if the Zags and Gaels replicate their most recent performances.
“It should be a great crowd, great game, just like it was last year,” said Few, referring to GU’s 70-57 win in Moraga a year ago. “Hopefully, if we can play like this (against Oregon State), it’ll be a heck of a game.”