GONZAGA (22-9, 14-4 WCC) vs SANTA CLARA (24-8, 13-5)
MONDAY, MARCH 9 | 2:30 P.M. | LAS VEGAS, NEVADA | ORLEANS ARENA
RADIO: 101.5 FM | GAME NOTES
TV: ESPN+ | LIVE STATS

THE TIPOFF
- The Gonzaga women's basketball team heads to Las Vegas for the WCC Tournament. The first game is on Monday, March 9 in the semifinals game against TBD. 

- Freshman Lauren Whittaker is shooting at 55.8% from the floor, which ranks first in the West Coast Conference and 26th in the nation. With 599 points so far this season, she is second in scoring among other freshmen in the country and 20th overall. Earlier this month against Pacific, Whittaker broke the freshman season scoring record, surpassing Tammy Tibbles' record of 475 points in 1984-85.

- Lisa Fortier has led the Bulldogs to a 10th-straight season of at least 20 wins. It is her 11th one overall. 

- Gonzaga is currently ranked third in the country in three-point percentage at 38.4%. 

- Individually, Allie Turner leads the team in made threes this season with 78 and ranks first in the WCC. Most recently against Saint Mary's, she tied the single game record of made threes with nine. With averaging 2.5 three-pointers a game, Turner also ranks eighth in the country in three-point shooting at 45.6%.

- Overall, the Bulldogs are shooting at an impressive 45.3% from the floor which ranks first in the WCC.

- The Zags have outrebounded their opponents in 30 games this year and has a rebound margin of +11.4 to rank sixth in the country and first in the WCC.

- Whittaker has scored at least 20 points in 13 games so far this year. Against Oregon State, Whittaker scored 37 points to break the freshman single game record of 33 points.  She has reached double figures in scoring in 25 games played and has 17 double doubles, which is a GU freshman record.  

- Whittaker's 317 rebounds rank first among freshmen in the nation and 16th overall. She broke the freshman record for most rebounds in a season already, surpassing Heather Bowman's 209. Whittaker is also closing in on the single season record for rebounds and sits second overall. She sits behind only Yvonne Ejim's 325 rebounds from last season. 

- The Zags represent the last three WCC Freshman of the Year with Lauren Whittaker (2026), Allie Turner (2025) and Zee Aokuso in 2024 during her time at Saint Mary's.

- Head coach Lisa Fortier currently sits at 311-83 in her career. Among active Division I coaches with at least five years at the level, she is currently ranked fifth in winning percentage (.791). Fortier is also now in second place on the WCC career coaching wins list with 185 and ranks first in winning percentage in WCC games at 87.3% (185-28). 

THE SERIES
SERIES INFO: Gonzaga leads the series overall 52-31.
STREAK: Santa Clara - 1
FIRST MEETING: In 1988, Gonzaga won at home, 59-45.
LAST MEETING: In their lone matchup in the WCC Regular Season, Santa Clara won on Jan. 4, 77-73. Lauren Whittaker led the team with 21 points and collected 13 rebounds, including 11 on the defensive end.

SCOUTING THE BRONCOS
- Santa Clara enters the matchup with a 24-8 overall record and 13-5 mark in WCC play. 

- The Broncos average 81.1 points per game while allowing 67.9 ppg this season. 

- Santa Clara makes 9.7 three-pointers per game and shoots 31.4 percent from beyond the arc as a team. 

- Maia Jones leads the team in scoring at 15.0 points per game, while Ashley Hawkins averages 6.4 assists per game. 

- The Broncos have five players averaging at least 9.5 points per game this season.

WCC POSTSEASON HONORS
- Lauren Whittaker was named WCC Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year, becoming the first player in Gonzaga history to win both in the same season and just the second freshman in WCC history to earn Player of the Year (Sonya Carter, U.S. International, 1986).

- Gonzaga has produced the WCC Player of the Year for four-straight seasons and the Freshman of the Year in back-to-back seasons.

- Whittaker led the WCC in scoring (19.3), rebounding (10.2) and field goal percentage (.568) with a conference-best 17 double-doubles and a record 13 WCC Freshman of the Week honors.

- Jaiden Haile was named WCC Sixth Woman of the Year and to the All-Freshman Team after averaging 6.8 points and 6.2 rebounds in 18.8 minutes while playing all 31 games. This was GU's fourth Sixth Woman of the Year honor (Melody Kempton, Yvonne Ejim, Maud Huijbens). 

- Allie Turner earned All-WCC First Team honors after averaging 14.4 points, shooting 45.6% from three and 96.1% from the free throw line with 105 assists.

- Gonzaga placed two players on the All-WCC First Team (Turner, Whittaker).

300 WINS
- Head coach Lisa Fortier and her staff reached 300 wins on Jan 2 against Seattle. This victory marked a significant milestone for head coach Lisa Fortier, as it was her 300th career win, making her the fastest coach in GU history to reach this achievement. 

- Among active Division I women's basketball head coaches, Fortier and LSU's Kim Mulkey each captured their 300th career Division I win in their 379th career game. Connecticut's Geno Auriemma is the third-fastest active Division I head coach to reach 300 career Division I victories, collecting the milestone win in his 386th career game. 

-  Fortier is only six wins away from becoming the all-time winningest coach at Gonzaga history, as she is only behind Kelly Graves with 316 wins.

FRESHMAN STARS
- Against Pepperdine, Jaiden Haile led with 21 points on 9-of-14 shooting and added 12 rebounds, marking her first double double. This performance was part of a historic moment for GU, as it's the first time in their history to have two freshmen achieve a stat line of at least 20 points and 10 rebounds each in a season. 

- Only two other freshmen in GU history have reached that stat line which was Heather Bowman (2006) and Jill Barta (2016).

- Haile and Whittaker join an elite list as only 10 other freshmen in GU history have recorded a double double (Jill Barta, Heather Bowman, Anne Bailey, Kelly Bowen, Janelle Bekkering, Courtney Vandersloot, Jenn Wirth, Ashley Anderson, Emma Wolfram, Shelby Cheslek).

- Freshman Paige Lofing has come off the bench to deliver some remarkable performances. Most recently against WSU, Lofing scored 17 points and went 4-for-5, from beyond the arc. Her only missed three in the game drew a foul and she made all three of her free throws. 

- Lofing and Whittaker are two of seven freshmen to score four more threes in a single game in GU history. They join Anne Bailey, Bree Salenbien, Zhane Templeton, Kayleigh Truong and Allie Turner. 

WHITTAKER TAKEOVER
- At Oregon State, Lauren Whittaker scored 37 points, which was one point shy of tying the single game points record. She broke the freshman single game point performance record as well.

- Whittaker scored 29 points against Colorado State. She was the first freshman to reach at least 29 points since Jill Barta in 2016 when she scored 31.

- Against Missouri State, Whittaker recorded 16 rebounds. It marked second in a single game record for freshmen, only behind Anne Bailey with 20.

- Whittaker is one of three freshmen in GU history to reach 29 points or more in a game, joining Barta (2016) and Heather Bowman (2006).

- Whittaker currently has 17 double doubles on the season and holds the GU record for most as a freshman. She also ranks 12th in the nation in double doubles and first among freshmen.

- So far this season, Whittaker has had 13 games with 20 or more points. She is one of four freshmen in GU history to have multiple 20+ point games. (Allie Turner x5, Heather Bowman x8, Jill Barta x8)

- With 17 double doubles so far this season, Whittaker is one of five freshmen in Gonzaga history to have multiple double doubles in a season. (Barta x4, Bowman x4, Anne Bailey x2, Shelby Chelsek x2)

TRIPLE THREATS ALL AROUND
- Against San Diego, Gonzaga tied its most threes in a game this season with 12. Eight Zags made a three in the game, led by Teryn Gardner's four. Overall, the team shot at 48% (12 for 25).

- With 78 three pointers made this year, Allie Turner is leading the time at 46.4%.

- In 21 games this year, the Bulldogs have made seven or more threes in a game with the most being 12 against UC Davis and San Diego. 

- Five Zags have a shooting percentage beyond the arc above 35% (Gardner, Whittaker, Turner, Lofing, Wilson)

A.T. = AUTOMATIC FROM THREE
- Against Saint Mary's Allie Turner tied Michelle Elliott Clark's single game record of most made threes with nine. She went 9-for-14 from beyond the arc.

- Allie Turner was tied for #1 among all returners in three points made in 2024-25 and the first freshman since 2020-21 to record 100+ three pointers in a single season.

- Turner's 105 made threes is the most made in a single season at Gonzaga last season. She broke the record against UTSA to pass Brynna Maxwell's record of 96 in a single season (2023-24). She is one of two players in Gonzaga history, men's or women's, to reach 100 threes in a single season with the only other Bulldog being Dan Dickau in 2001-02.