Outright WCC title within Gonzaga’s grasp

MALIBU, Calif. – With at least a share of the West Coast Conference regular-season title already in hand, the fifth-ranked Gonzaga Bulldogs (22-3 overall, 11-0 in the WCC) roll into Pepperdine’s Firestone Fieldhouse this evening looking to build on their 13-game winning streak and win the league title outright.

Tipoff is set for 9, and standing in GU’s way is a Pepperdine team that has been as hard to figure as any in the conference.

The Waves (7-16, 3-8) have lost four straight but looked very impressive in knocking off second-place Loyola Marymount 70-62 before starting their skid. Senior guard Tashaan Forehan-Kelly lit the Lions up for a career-high 35 points in that one and has continued to put up big numbers in raising his scoring average to 14.5 points per game.

“He’s been tearing it up,” GU coach Mark Few said of the 6-foot-4 Forehan-Kelly. “He’s got a lot of confidence right now, and he’s really been scoring it well.”

Adding to the uncertainty of tonight’s encounter is the status of Pepperdine’s Michael Gerrity. The freshman point guard, who leads the Waves in scoring with an average of 14.8 ppg, has missed two of the last three games with a stress reaction in his foot and did not play in Saturday’s 81-75 loss to Portland.

GU assistant coach Bill Grier, who did the scouting work on Pepperdine for tonight’s matchup, said it was his understanding that Waves coach Paul Westphal was limiting Gerrity to just one game a week, which would seem to suggest he will be in Pepperdine’s rotation tonight.

“Without him, it changes the whole way they play,” Few said of Gerrity. “They might even be more efficient without him. But I’ve got to think he’s going to play against us.”

Grier said, however, that the key to dealing with Pepperdine’s offense is to contain Forehan-Kelly.

“They run a lot of sets to get him shots,” Grier explained, “and he’s had a bunch of big games for them recently. They’re not as athletic, maybe, as they’ve been, but this Pepperdine team seems to be more cohesive. And they guard you better than they have in the last four or five years.”

Tonight’s game, which will be televised live on ESPN2 as the nightcap of ESPN’s Big Monday tripleheader, is expected to draw another sellout crowd to the Waves’ tiny 3,104-seat Firestone Fieldhouse.