Saint Mary’s Tops Gonzaga, Sweeps the West Coast Conference

Saint Mary’s and Gonzaga have been the two clear powerhouses of the West Coast Conference, as they have matched up in 12 of the past 16 championship games. Gonzaga had been crowned the champs in 8 of those games, but the Gaels had other plans today. After winning the regular season title, the number one-seeded Saint Mary’s Gaels were able to run through the semifinals before outplaying the Gonzaga Bulldogs to claim the tournament title as well. It was the defense of the Gaels that controlled the outcome of this one, holding the Zags to just 60 points, which was 26 points below their season average of 86 per game. 

Sophomore guard Aidan Mahaney led the Gaels in scoring with 23 points, shooting an efficient 5-7 from the three-point line. Center Mitchell Saxen also did damage in the paint, putting up 19 points in addition to 15 rebounds. Saint Mary’s trimmed their rotation to just six players for the championship, with the only bench piece getting action being guard Luke Barrett getting 12 minutes (zero points). For the Zags, senior forward Anton Watson paced the team with 18 points and seven rebounds. Ben Gregg was the only starter for Gonzaga to shoot 50% or better from the field, and only two three-pointers were made by the entire team. The Zags’ two for 11 in comparison to the Gaels’ six for 15 was ultimately the difference maker in this matchup. 

This will be the third consecutive NCAA tournament appearance from Saint Mary’s, but the last two bids were at-large as Gonzaga claimed the WCC title the previous two years. The Gaels have won their first-round matchup in each of the past two tournaments before losing in the second round. They will surely be a top-seven seed, with it being more likely than not that they end up with a five or six seed. That could present a dangerous matchup, but the Gaels look more ready than they have in previous years to make a run. As for the Zags, they will make their 24th straight NCAA appearance, and look to be a six or seven seed similar to the Gaels.