LAS VEGAS ­­­— The West Coast Conference Championship kicks off this week at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas as Saint Mary's looks for its first tournament title since 2012.

The Gaels earned the No. 2 seed in the tournament after finishing conference play 11-5 and earning the tiebreaker over BYU. Saint Mary's will immediately advance to the semifinals and play the winner of BYU versus San Diego/Santa Clara.
 
Links for live stats and live streams for each game can be found on the Gaels' schedule page.
 
ABOUT THE GAELS
Saint Mary's completed their 12^th straight season with 20 or more wins when they defeated Portland at home last week. SMC has made the NCAA Tournament or National Invitation Tournament (NIT) in each of the past 11 years and currently sit in the "First Four Out" according to ESPN's Joe Lunardi.
 
The Gaels have the 29^th best strength of schedule this season after playing No. 1 Gonzaga last week and are rated No. 39 in NET. KenPom.com is also bullish on SMC with a No. 34 ranking, which is equal to the team's final ranking last season.
 
Gaels' junior Jordan Ford tied Yoeli Childs exactly for the conference's scoring title with 21.5 points per game. The guard also led the WCC in 3-point shooting percentage and ranked among the league's top in assists, minutes played, field goal percentage, and steals.
 
Saint Mary's owns the 21^st most efficient offense in the country according to KenPom.com and are also top-75 in defensive efficiency. Ford, Tanner Krebs, and Malik Fitts are among the WCC's top-10 perimeter shooters while Dan Fotu is also shooting above 42 percent from beyond the arc.

The most likely opponents will play are...
 
ABOUT BYU
The Cougars will take on the winner of Friday's San Diego-Santa Clara matchup and will be the favorite as the No. 3 seed. BYU was 2-0 against both teams during the regular season and only lost to Saint Mary's, San Francisco (twice), and Gonzaga (twice).
 
As mentioned, Childs led the team's offensive efforts with 21.5 per game and nearly averaged a double-double with 9.8 boards. Childs and teammate TJ Haws formed the conference's top scoring duo as Haws was good for 18.1 points per contest as well. Freshman Gavin Baxter was the team's third highest scorer during WCC play at 7.7 points and was an efficient 68 percent from the floor.
 
Saint Mary's and BYU split their regular season matchups with both teams winning in their respective home arenas. The Gaels hammered the Cougars for a 22-point victory in McKeon before BYU got their revenge with a 5-point win in Provo.
 
The Cougars got the best of Saint Mary's last year in Las Vegas with an 85-72 win in the semifinal round. Ford led the Gaels with 27 points in the game.
 
ABOUT GONZAGA
Should they win their Monday contest, Saint Mary's would figure to play No. 1 Gonzaga in the championship game as the Zags were a perfect 16-0 in WCC action. The two teams met in the last game of the conference schedule where Gonzaga utilized a 17-0 second half run to win out in McKeon.
 
WCC Player of the Year Rui Hachimura and WCC Defensive Player of the Year Brandon Clarke headline the Bulldogs' roster. Hachimura sat just behind Ford and Childs in the scoring category with over 20 per game while shooting 61 percent from the field. Clarke had 99 blocks en route to his DPOY award and led the conference in field goal percentage at 68.8 percent.
 
Gonzaga has won the last six WCC Tournaments and faced off with Saint Mary's two years ago in the championship round. The Zags will face the winner of the San Francisco versus Loyola Marymount/Pepperdine game on Monday in the semifinals.
 
ABOUT SANTA CLARA
The Broncos take on San Diego on Friday night for a shot at BYU one day later. Santa Clara went 8-8 in conference play and 16-14 overall to secure the No. 6 seed. Saint Mary's won both contests against SCU during the regular season, a 20-point win in Moraga and an 11-point victory in Santa Clara.
 
Tahj Eaddy and Josep Vrankic each averaged 14.1 points during WCC play to lead their team and both were named All-WCC last week. Eaddy grabbed Second Team honors while Vrankic was named an Honorable Mention.  
 
The Broncos entered the tournament as winners of three of their last four, including a big win over USF.
 
ABOUT SAN DIEGO
USD advanced past Portland on Thursday as five different Toreros went for double-digit points including Isaiah Pineiro who led the team with 16. The senior Pineiro led San Diego during the regular season with over 19 points per game. Fellow seniors Olin Carter III and Isaiah Wright are also averaging 15.8 and 13.1 this season, respectively, and each had 13 against Portland.
 
The Gaels would gladly welcome a third match with the Toreros as they beat them by 17 and 20 points during the regular season. In the teams' last meeting in San Diego, Saint Mary's held USD to just 46 and under 30 percent shooting overall.