Game #12
Saint Mary's Gaels (7-4) vs. Pacific Tigers (7-3)
Monday, December 31, 2018 at 5:00 p.m. PT
Stockton, Calif. — Alex G. Spanos Center
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Game #13
Saint Mary's Gaels (7-4) vs. Gonzaga Bulldogs (12-1)
Thursday, January 3, 2019 at 6:00 p.m. PT
Spokane, Wash. — McCarthey Athletic Center
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Game #14
Saint Mary's Gaels (7-4) vs. Portland Pilots (8-4)
Saturday, January 5, 2019 at 2:00 p.m. PT
Portland, Ore. — Chiles Center
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MORAGA, Calif. — Saint Mary's looks to play their last game of the calendar year as well as the first two games of 2019 this week as conference play begins with a three-game road trip.

SCOUTING REPORT
The Gaels are coming off of a Tulane Classic Championship last week where they picked up wins against Texas State and Old Dominion. After a career-night for freshman Sam Simons and a 27-point win over Texas State, Saint Mary's kept the momentum rolling into an 18-point victory against Old Dominion as senior Sydney Raggio was named the All-Tournament Most Valuable Player following the game.

Raggio is ranked 13th amongst active Division I rebound leaders with 846 in her career and was honored as last week's WCC Player of the Week. She had two impressive performances in the tournament including a game-high, 23 points in the championship game including eight rebounds, two assists, and a steal. She was 8-for-12 in the game which was good for a .667 field goal percentage.
 
In the week's three games, she averaged 16.0 points and 7.3 rebounds while shooting 51.4 percent. Furthermore, she was perfect from the free throw line, going 11-for-11 during the week. Sydney currently leads Saint Mary's in average points (13.2), rebounds (8.5), and minutes (29.0).

The Gaels are off to a strong start this year as the WCC leader in field goal percentage (.482) which is also ranked 11th in the NCAA. The Gaels are ranked second in the conference with an average of 74.3 points per game and are close behind the Portland Pilots (77). Saint Mary's also ranks first within the conference in 3-point field goal percentage (.385) which has them ranked 16th in the nation.

PACIFIC
The Pacific Tigers are 7-3 going into Monday's game and are coming off of a 72-64 victory over Cal State Fullerton last week. However, they dropped their two prior games against Central Florida and Lamar. Pacific still holds an undefeated, 4-0 record at home this season and are ranked fifth in the conference.

The Tigers hold the No. 3 spot in the WCC in scoring offense with 72.7 points per game and are led by sophomore Valerie Higgins who is recording an average of 17.1 points per matchup. Following closely behind (14.2 per game) is sophomore Brooklyn McDavid who has the highest field-goal percentage (.463) for Pacific. Senior Ameela Li is another top performer for the Tigers as she leads the team in 3-point percentage (.469)

GONZAGA
The Gonzaga Bulldogs are 12-1 this season which has them ranked first in the conference and 16th in the NCAA. The Zags most recently defeated LMU by 25 points in their first conference game of the season. The only loss of their season came against No. 1-ranked Notre Dame during the Vancouver Showcase on Thanksgiving, but the Bulldogs have since been on a 8-0 win streak.

Gonzaga is led by Jill Townsend who is shooting .525 while also recording the second highest 3-point percentage (.500) on the team. The team is ranked first in the conference in scoring defense (56.0 points per game) and 36th in the NCAA. Zykera Rice sits atop the rebound (96) and blocks (14) categories while averaging a block per game, while also holding the number two spot in shooting percentage (.439).

PORTLAND
Portland is currently 8-4 on the season and is ranked third in the conference. The Pilots are coming off of an 82-68 loss against Pepperdine and have matches against LMU and Pacific before the game against Saint Mary's on Saturday. This is the Pilots' best start to a season since the 1997-98 team that went 11-2.

Julie Spencer is first on the team in rebounds (93), points-per-game (15.7), and total points (188) and is ranked fifth in the conference in scoring and fourth in rebounding. Haylee Andrews leads the team in assists (54) which is third in the WCC. She is also ranked second in the conference in 3-point percentage (.522).