Jim Meehan

The rivalry germinated when the Gaels strung together six straight 25-plus win seasons from 2008-13, including two regular-season titles, two tournament crowns and four NCAA Tournament appearances. Saint Mary’s won at least one matchup vs. Gonzaga in five of those six seasons.

Tyon Grant-Foster, one of six Gonzaga seniors, watched from the bench while the other five were greeted with ovations walking to center court with family during pregame festivities on Senior Night.

Three takeaways from Gonzaga’s 89-48 West Coast Conference victory over Portland on Wednesday in the home finale.

We went overtime on the latest Zags Insiders Podcast in honor of Team USA’s golden hockey teams and Gonzaga’s busy stretch to close the regular season.

Gonzaga returned to the top 10 in the Associated Press college basketball poll after an upset-filled week in which eight top-10 teams suffered setbacks.

Fogle has emerged in a more prominent role in the rotation in the 11 games Braden Huff has been sidelined with a knee injury.

Freshman Davis Fogle and Emmanuel Innocenti provided a scoring boost with Graham Ike enduring an up-and-down evening offensively. Both have become important contributors with Braden Huff missing the last 11 games with a knee injury.

Three takeaways at the buzzer from Gonzaga’s 80-59 West Coast Conference win over San Francisco on Wednesday at the Chase Center.

Former Gonzaga center Richard Fox and yours truly discussed the offensive efficiency and possible tweaks to the starting five/rotation in the latest Zags Insiders Podcast.

Gonzaga took a step toward returning to the Associated Press poll’s top 10 and the NET’s top five.

Three takeaways at the buzzer from Gonzaga’s 94-86 road win over Santa Clara on Saturday.

Gonzaga-Santa Clara doesn’t approach the annual GU-Saint Mary’s collisions that seemingly determine the West Coast Conference hierarchy. But for sheer drama, individual excellence (hello Steve Nash), inexplicable fouls 70 feet from the hoop, game-winning shots and the expiration of a pair of lengthy homecourt winning streaks, Zags-Broncos more than holds its own for must-see moments over the course of Gonzaga’s 46-year run in the WCC.

On Tuesday, Innocenti was a key reason why Washington State leading scorer Ace Glass and his teammates had off nights in Gonzaga’s 83-53 victory at the McCarthey Athletic Center. Glass, a talented 6-foot-3 freshman, came in averaging 16.5 points but produced only 12 points on 4-of-13 shooting, including 0 of 5 on 3-point attempts.

Three takeaways at the buzzer from Gonzaga’s 83-53 victory over Washington State on Tuesday at the McCarthey Athletic Center.

Gonzaga returns home to face Washington State on Tuesday before visiting Santa Clara on Saturday in a clash of the top two teams in the West Coast Conference standings.

Gonzaga’s upset loss to Portland was obviously a blemish on the Zags’ NCAA Tournament resume, but perhaps not quite as damaging as some predicted initially.

Graham Ike’s broad shoulders carried the Zags' offense again. The 6-foot-9 senior forward scored at all three levels operating against a wave of OSU big men – 6-11 Johan Munch, 7-2 Noah Amenhauser, 6-11 Jorge Diaz Graham and 6-11 Yaak Yaak – as well as several zone defenses.

Three takeaways at the buzzer from Gonzaga’s 87-80 road loss to Portland on Wednesday at the Chiles Center.

Graham Ike stole the show Saturday as No. 6 Gonzaga downed rival Saint Mary’s 73-65.

One of Gonzaga’s bigger wins of the season – a hard-fought 73-65 victory over rival Saint Mary’s – didn’t move the needle in terms of polls, NET ratings and NCAA Tournament projections. The Zags, riding a 15-game winning streak, stayed put at No. 6 in the Associated Press poll and slipped from fourth to fifth in the NET rankings.

Graham Ike, sidelined the last three games with a right ankle injury, carried GU’s offense for long stretches against the Gaels. The 6-foot-9 senior post delivered 14 first-half points, including the team’s only made 3-pointer, in 17 minutes. He missed his first five shots of the second half before finding his shooting stroke.

Graham Ike took care of the offense with 30 points, but Gonzaga took care of Saint Mary’s 73-65 Saturday in large part by shutting down the Gaels’ Paulius Murauskas in the second half and winning the glass throughout.

We connected with Steve Kroner to get a closer look on the Gaels and Saturday’s showdown. Kroner covered Bay Area college basketball for the San Francisco Chronicle for two decades. He works for Saint Mary’s as a broadcaster and a writer and still covers the other Bay Area schools as a freelancer for the Chronicle.

Former Gonzaga center Richard Fox, now an analyst for GU telecasts on KHQ and SWX, and yours truly spent at least half of our near hour-long Zags Insiders Podcast on Monday breaking down the matchup – with or without Graham Ike (ankle) in Gonzaga’s lineup. Here are a few of our thoughts.