SPOKANE, Wash. – The No. 23/23 Gonzaga women's basketball team returns home for the first time since Dec. 13 to host Saint Mary's in its conference opener Saturday, Jan. 2 inside the McCarthey Athletic Center. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.
 
#23/23 GONZAGA (7-2, 2-0 WCC) vs. SAINT MARY'S (2-5, 0-1 WCC)
JAN. 2 | 2 P.M. | SPOKANE, WASH. | McCARTHEY ATHLETIC CENTER
LIVE STREAM | LIVE STATS
 
THE TIP-OFF
- The Zags return to Spokane after a perfect 2-0 road trip to SoCal to open WCC play. GU kicked off the week with a 65-62 win at Loyola Marymount followed by a commanding 58-42 victory at Pepperdine.
- Gonzaga has opened WCC play 2-0 each of the last three seasons and five of the last six seasons.
- This will be the 15th time Gonzaga has played on Jan. 2 and the second-straight season. Last year, GU defeated BYU 55-43 in Provo. Currently, Gonzaga holds an 11-3 record on the date and has won the last 10 games it has played on the date.
- For the second time in program history, the Bulldogs were ranked in the preseason Associated Press Poll. Gonzaga debuted at No. 21 in the AP poll and at No. 20 ranking in the USA Today/WBCA Coaches Poll. It marks the third time in history GU has been ranked in the preseason coaches poll and the second-straight season.
- Currently, Gonzaga is ranked 23rd in both the AP and Coaches polls. The Bulldogs have now been ranked or receiving votes for 44 consecutive voting weeks, dating back to Dec. 3, 2018.
- The Bulldogs return three starters and nine letter winners from last season's squad that claimed the Zags' fourth consecutive West Coast Conference regular season title.
- In 2019-20, Gonzaga rose to its highest regular-season national ranking ever, securing a No. 11 AP and No. 10 ranking in the USA Today/WBCA Coaches Poll. Prior to the cancellation of the NCAA Tournament due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Zags were predicted as high as a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament and were expected to host the First and Second Rounds for the first time since the NCAA changed hosting rules for the tournament in 2014-15.
- Gonzaga returns 79.1 percent of its scoring and 79.2 percent of its rebounding from last season.
- Gonzaga returns as one of the top defensive teams in the nation from a season ago. In 2019-20, the Bulldogs ranked third in the nation in scoring defense, limiting opponents to 51.9 points per game.
- The Bulldogs won 28 games last season, including a 17-1 mark in WCC play to tie their own record for wins in a conference season. It was the fourth-straight 25+ win season and 12th 25+ win season in the last 13 seasons.
 
SERIES NOTES
- HOME: 23-10, Gonzaga leads
- ROAD: 18-15, Saint Mary's leads
- NEUTRAL: 7-1, Gonzaga leads
- FIRST MEETING: Saint Mary's won 79-63 in Moraga (2/6/1988)
- LAST MEETING: Saint Mary's won 70-60 in Moraga (2/8/20)
- STREAK: Saint Mary's, Won 1
 
SCOUTING THE GAELS
- Saint Mary's carries a 2-5 overall record on the season with an 0-1 mark in WCC play. The Gaels fell at Pacific 78-70 in overtime in their only conference game of the season.
- SMC has not had any games canceled this season.
- As a team, the Gaels average 68.9 points per contest shooting 42.8 percent from the floor and 34.9 percent from three. Saint Mary's leads the conference in rebounding at 43.7 rebounds per contest; Gonzaga ranks second at 41.5.
- The Gales rank third-to-last in the conference in scoring defense, giving up an average of 74.0 points per contest.
- Four, nearly five, players average double-figures for SMC, led by Taycee Wedin at 13.7 points per game. Madeline Holland adds 12.4, freshman Finau Tonga averages 11.6 while Jade Kirisome chips in 11.7. Amy West is close to double-figures at 9.7 per game.
- The Gaels are shooting 42.8 percent from teh floor, and four of its top five scorers are shooting at least 40 percent from the floor whith two players shooting over 50 percent (Tonga, 52.2 percent; West, 56.5 percent).
- Brianna Simonich leads the effort on the glass, averaging a team-best 10.9 rebounds per contest. That mark also ranks second in the conference behind BYU's Lauren Gustin at 12.6.
- Just over a third of SMU's field goal attempts are from long range; currently the Gaels are shooting 34.9 percent from beyond-the-arc. Wedin is SMC's most accurate long-range shooter at 40.4 percent (19-of-47).
 
THE GLASS BELONGS TO THE ZAGS
[Dec. 30] After a less-than-satisfactory start to the season on the glass, Gonzaga has responded in a big way the last six games. Since Dec. 6 when GU edged South Dakota State 35-32 on the boards, the Zags have out-rebounded their opponents by an average of 20.8 rebounds per game. In each of the last six games, GU has registered at least 40 rebounds, with a season-high 56 coming against North Alabama on Dec. 21.
 
MAKING IT LOOK EASY
Jenn Wirth and Jill Townsend have been double-double machines to start West Coast Conference play. Both seniors recorded a double-double in each of GU's first two conference games. Townsend recorded 19 points, 10 rebounds against LMU and 13 points, 10 boards at Pepperdine. Jenn Wirth added 14 points, 10 rebounds at LMU with a 12-point, 14 rebound performance at Pepperdine. Wirth's 14 rebounds are the most by a Gonzaga player this season, and it's the second-most she's hauled in during her career. Her career high is 15 rebounds, a feat she accomplished against Santa Clara on Feb. 15, 2020. Currently, Wirth ranks third in the conference in rebounding at 9.2 per game; Townsend ranks 16th with 6.0.