#13/13 GONZAGA (25-2, 14-1 WCC) at LOYOLA MARYMOUNT (6-19, 3-10 WCC)
FEB. 20 | 7 P.M. | LOS ANGELES | GERSTEN PAVILION
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THE TIP-OFF
- Gonzaga secured a share of its 16th West Coast Conference title on Saturday with a 53-46 victory over Santa Clara. It marks the fourth-straight season the Bulldogs have claimed the regular-season title. A win on Thursday at Loyola Marymount would secure the outright title; currently, Gonzaga (14-1 WCC) has a three-game lead over both San Diego (10-4) and BYU (10-4).
- GU will look to improve to 26-2 overall on the season Thursday at Loyola Marymount. With a win, Gonzaga will match its program-record start. The Zags have posted a 26-2 mark only once before, during the 2004-05 season. That season, GU strung together a program-best 23-game win streak and finished the season 28-4 overall with an unblemished 14-0 mark in WCC play. The Bulldogs advanced to the second round of the WNIT, losing at Missouri State 85-66 to end the season.
- With the 53-46 victory over Santa Clara on Feb. 15, the Zags finished undefeated at home for the fourth time in program history and the first time since the 2013-14 season; it also marks the seventh undefeated home conference slate in program history. GU is currently on a 16-game win streak inside The Kennel, the longest streak under Head Coach Lisa Fortier. GU has not lost a game inside McCarthey since Feb. 16, 2019. Previously, GU's top mark under Fortier was 12 straight home wins, which occurred from 11/7/18-2/14/19.
- Gonzaga broke into the Associated Press Top 25 poll at No. 23 following a 76-70 overtime loss at Stanford on Nov. 17. This week, GU jumped two spots in both the Associated Press and Coaches Poll to No. 13.
- Thursday marks the 10th time in program history that Gonzaga has taken the court on Feb. 20. The Bulldogs carry a 3-6 overall record on the date. It also marks the second time in history that GU has faced Loyola Marymount on Feb. 20. In the last meeting on the date, Gonzaga defeated LMU 69-57 inside The Kennel during the 1998-99 season.
- Gonzaga leads the nation in attendance percent capacity at 94.87 percent. That's an average of 5,692 fans inside the McCarthey Athletic Center every game. This season alone, Gonzaga has had six sellouts, including four of the last five home games.
- The Bulldogs also rank inside the top 10 in the nation in scoring defense; Gonzaga limits its opponents to 51.9 points per contest to lead the WCC and rank fifth in the nation.
- Gonzaga is also among the top three-point shooting teams in the nation. At 39.2 percent shooting from long range, Gonzaga ranks fourth in the nation. Two players shoot over 40 percent from long range, led by Jill Townsend at 42.7 percent, while eight total Zags shoot at least 30.0 percent from beyond-the-arc.
- The Zags also rank inside the top 25 in the nation in field goal percentage. At 45.0 percent shooting from the floor, GU ranks 24th nationally and second in the WCC.
- Gonzaga returns two starters and seven letter-winners from last season's squad that claimed the Zags' third consecutive and 15th overall West Coast Conference regular season title.
- In 2018-19, the Bulldogs advanced to their third-straight NCAA Tournament, advancing to the Second Round.
 
SCOUTING THE LIONS
- Loyola Marymount carries a 6-19 overall record with a 3-10 mark in conference play. LMU opened conference play with four-straight losses before stringing together three-straight wins from Jan. 9-18. Since defeating Pepperdine 84-77 on Jan. 18, the Lions have lost six straight games.
- As a squad, LMU averages 64.3 points per game shooting 39.9 percent from the floor. The Lions' 64.4 points per game ranks eighth in the WCC.
- Three players average double figures for Loyola Marymount, led by Chelsey Gipson at 13.1 points per game shooting 33.3 percent from the floor. Ciera Ellington adds 11.3 points per game while Jasmine Jones averages an even 11.0.
- The Lions add 39.1 rebounds per game, 12.8 assists, 8.0 steals and 4.3 blocks per game. Jones leads the Lions in rebounding with 7.7 per game to rank fifth in the WCC. Ellington adds 5.5 per game to rank 14th in the conference.
- In the last meeting, Gonzaga became the first team in the nation to reach 20 wins with a 78-52 win over the Lions in front of a sold-out McCarthey Athletic Center. Jill Townsend drained six threes on her way to a career-high 28 points, while Jenn Wirth added her second-straight double-double with 17 points and 13 rebounds.
 
SERIES HISTORY
Overall: Gonzaga leads 48-21
- HOME: 26-6, Gonzaga leads
- ROAD: 19-14, Gonzaga leads
- NEUTRAL: 3-1, Gonzaga leads
- FIRST MEETING: Gonzaga won, 100-78 (1985 in Los Angeles)
- LAST MEETING: Gonzaga won 78-52 (1/25/20 in Spokane)
- STREAK: Gonzaga, Won 25
 
 
DISHIN' ON UP
With her third assist of the night against Loyola Marymount on Jan. 25, Jessie Loera moved into fifth all-time in career assists, surpassing Jasmine Redmon (400, 2010-14). Loera now has 428 career assists and is 13 assists shy of surpassing Amy Simpson (439, 1982-86) for fourth place. Loera currently ranks 16th nationally in assists with 133 on the season and 30th nationally in assists per game with 5.1.
 
SHARING THE SCORE
- Through 27 games this season, two players average double-figures for Gonzaga with five players averaging over 7.0 points per contest. The Bulldogs have had seven different top scorers this season, spanning each academic year (freshman, sophomore, junior, senior).
Jill Townsend leads the Zags in scoring at 12.1 points per game, while Jenn Wirth adds 10.5 points per contest. LeeAnne Wirth adds 8.9 points per contest while Jessie Loera chips in 7.7 and Melody Kempton is at 7.1.
 
DEFENSIVE STRENGTH
Currently, Gonzaga ranks fifth in the nation in scoring defense at 51.9 points per game. This season alone, Gonzaga has limited 14 opponents to 50 points or fewer and 22 opponents to under 60 points. Eight of the last 10 games, the Zags have held their opponents to under 60 points; only two (Pacific, 65 points; Saint Mary's, 70 points) have scored more than 52 points. On Jan. On Jan. 23 against Pepperdine, Gonzaga held the Waves to just 36 points, more than 30 points below their season average of 66.4. Pepperdine's 36 points also ties for the fewest points allowed to a WCC opponent under Lisa Fortier. Thursday against San Francisco, GU held the Dons to 38 points.