WCC Tournament Quarterfinals
Saint Mary's Gaels (19-10, 12-6 WCC) vs. TBD
Saturday, March 9, 2019 at 1:00 p.m.
Las Vegas — Orleans Arena
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WCC Tournament Semifinals
Saint Mary's Gaels (19-10, 12-6 WCC) vs. No. 14 Gonzaga
Monday, March 11, 2019 at Noon
Las Vegas — Orleans Arena
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WCC Tournament Championship
Saint Mary's Gaels (19-10, 12-6 WCC) vs. TBD
Tuesday, March 12, 2019 at 1:00 p.m.
Las Vegas — Orleans Arena
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MORAGA, Calif. — SMC heads to the West Coast Conference Tournament after winning their final regular season game on March 1 against Pacific to secure the No. 4 seed. With a 12-6 conference record, Saint Mary's finished the year tied for third with Pepperdine.

SCOUTING REPORT
 
SMC heads to Las Vegas with the momentum on their side after having been showered with accolades over the past week: on Monday, senior Megan McKay was crowned WCC Player of the Week after notching team-highs in both points (17) and rebounds (14) against the Tigers. She also collected her seventh double-double of the season and her second in two games. McKay was very efficient, shooting 63.6 percent (7-for-11) on the night and contributed three assists and a block for good measure. In her last ten games, she has shot 70.7 percent (58-for-82). Her 61.0 percent shooting on the season is by far the highest in the conference and her career, 59.6 field goal percentage is ranked 14th in the NCAA amongst active players and first all-time in Saint Mary's history.
 
Then, on Tuesday, four Gaels were given All-WCC Honors including McKay and senior Sydney Raggio being placed on the First Team, Sam Simons earning All-Freshman Team honors, and junior Jasmine Forcadilla receiving an honorable mention. For the full release, click here.
 
As the No. 4 seed, Saint Mary's will play their first game in the Quarterfinals on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. against the winner of Game 3 (Loyola Marymount and San Francisco). The semifinals will follow on Monday at Noon against No. 14 Gonzaga and the championship game is set for Tuesday, March 12 against the winner of the second semifinal against BYU. The contest will be aired on ESPNU at 1:00 p.m.
 
POTENTIAL OPPONENTS:

BRIGHAM YOUNG
 
BYU enters the tournament as the No. 2 seed with a 23-6 overall record and a 15-3 mark in the WCC. The Cougars ended the regular season on a 6-game winning streak with their last loss coming at home against Saint Mary's on February 7. The Gaels defeated BYU 78-75. The Cougars were the only team to defeat Gonzaga this season as they took down the Bulldogs twice – both at home on the road. There are three Cougars averaging over 10 points a game including Shaylee Gonzales (16.3), Paisley Johnson (14.5), and Brenna Chase (12.4). BYU also leads the conference in blocked shots, entering the tournament with an average of 4.7 per game.  
 
No. 14 GONZAGA
 
The Zags are the WCC Champs of the regular season after posting a 16-2 conference record. Their only two WCC losses came at the hands of BYU and their only con-conference defeat was against Notre Dame who is currently ranked No. 4 in the nation. Gonzaga touted a 12-game winning streak this year which included their first six conference games. Zykera Rice has put up the biggest numbers for the Bulldogs this season, averaging 14.2 points and 5.9 rebounds. Jill Townsend, Laura Stockton, and Chandler Smith are all averaging over 9.0 points per game.  
 
PACIFIC
 
Sitting at 10-8 in the conference, The Tigers are the No. 8 seed in the tournament. The Tigers' biggest wins of the season were against Pepperdine (78-67) and Saint Mary's (76-67) in the first game of conference-play. UOP has three players who averaging over 10.0 points per game: Valerie Higgins (The WCC Defensive Player of the Year – 16.9), Brooklyn McDavid (14.8), and Ameela Li (13.7).
 
PEPPERDINE
 
The Waves were led this season by Yasmine Robinson-Bacote who was recently dubbed the WCC Player of the Year. She averaged 20.0 points per game this year and 7.5 rebounds. Her average points per game are tied for No. 23 in the nation. Barbara Sitanggan has also posted consistently-high numbers this season with an average of 11.2 points and 6.1 rebounds.
 
SAN FRANCISCO
 
The No. 9 seeded Dons were the first team to notch a victory in the 2019 WCC Tournament as defeated No. 8 Portland 76-69 on Thursday afternoon. San Francisco went 2-16 in conference-play with their two wins coming against San Diego and Santa Clara. They will now face Loyola Marymount in a contest which will decide Saint Mary's opponent on Saturday. Shannon Powell (All-WCC Second Team) was USF's biggest performer this season with 15.0 points and 5.6 rebounds.   
 
SANTA CLARA
 
The Broncos also won in the first round, covering their No. 7-ranking with a 63-59 win over the No. 10 seed San Diego. Santa Clara has won three of their last five contests and finished the conference schedule with a 6-12 record. Tia Hay was named to the All-WCC Second Team this year and led the Broncos with 15.3 points per game. Ashlyn Herlihy was the team's rebound leader with 7.3 per game while averaging 11.1 points.
 
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