LAS VEGAS – Saint Mary's Women's Basketball will begin play in the Credit Union 1 WCC Women's Basketball Championship starting this Friday in Las Vegas. The Gaels have earned a first-round bye as the sixth seed in the tournament and will take on LMU at 2:30 p.m. in round two.
 
SMC and LMU split the season series, with each team winning in the other's building. Saint Mary's held on for a 70-66 win over the Lions in Los Angeles on February 22 to split the season-series with LMU and climb over them in the standings.
 
The Gaels shot 68.2% from the field in the second half and made critical defensive stops late in the game to get the win, while Tayla Dalton scored a career-high 27 points to lead all scorers.
 
Saint Mary's fell behind early in the first quarter against LMU and were not able to come back against the Lions in a 66 to 48 loss at home on January 13. The teams have alternated knocking the other out in convincing fashion in the past two seasons, with the Lions eliminating the Gaels from the tournament in 2022, and SMC returning the favor last season.
 
THE DETAILS
6-seed Saint Mary's (13-17, 6-10) vs. 7-seed LMU (10-18, 5-11)
Friday, March 8 at 2:30 p.m.
Orleans Arena – Las Vegas
WATCH | LIVE STATS | TICKETS
 
LAST TIME OUT
Saint Mary's Women's Basketball closed out the regular season with a 69-48 win over Pepperdine by dominating the second half, guaranteeing themselves the sixth seed in this week's WCC Tournament.
 
The Gaels actually trailed by four at halftime, but won the second half 44-19. They shot 55.6% in the second half to the Wave's 24%, and forced Pepperdine into committing 10 more turnovers than themselves at 13-3.
 
Four Gaels finished in double figures scoring, as Tayla Dalton and Zeryhia Aokuso each had 15 points, Ruby Vlahov had 13, and Ali Bamberger finished with 11. Hannah Rapp led the club with six rebounds, and Dalton, Aokuso, and Bamberger each had four assists.
 
SMC forced 22 turnovers while committing just 10 of their own.
 
ABOUT LMU
The Lions were eighth in WCC play in points per game at 56.6, but fifth in points allowed at 64.9. The finished eighth in field goal percentage (36.6%) and in field goal percentage allowed (45%).
 
Forward Alexis Mark was named to All-WCC Honorable Mention Team this week. The senior from Chatsworthhh, Calif. concluded the 2023-2024 season with a career-high of 24 points and scored in double figures 15 times during the year.
 
She averaged 11.9 points per game and reached the 1,000-point milestone points during the matchup against the Saint Mary's Gaels on Jan. 13. She finished her regular-season college career with a total of 1142 points.
 
She also secured a milestone of 500 rebounds, concluding the season with a total of 756 rebounds. In the WCC, Mark finished 5th in rebounds for this season.
 
Mark holds the 14th spot in conference scoring, ranks eighth in free throw percentage, and is positioned 17th in minutes played, showcasing her well-rounded performance throughout the season.
 
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