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Gonzaga Basketball

Gonzaga women look to bounce back Saturday

Gonzaga’s win over Washington State looked better in December than it does now after the Cougars struggled in the Pac-12 season. (Colin Mulvany / The Spokesman-Review)
From staff and wire reports
Gonzaga’s win over Washington State looked better in December than it does now after the Cougars struggled in the Pac-12 season. (Colin Mulvany / The Spokesman-Review)

In more ways than one, the Gonzaga women will need to rebound Saturday afternoon.

The Bulldogs – preseason favorites to win the West Coast Conference title – are coming off a stunning 79-69 loss Thursday night at Pepperdine.

In that game, the Waves – picked to finish tied for last in the WCC – outrebounded GU 50-33 overall and had a commanding 19-7 advantage on the offensive glass.

For the first time this season, leading scorer Jill Barta did not start, but came off the bench to score 20 points.

It was GU’s first loss in a WCC opener in four years and first to Pepperdine since 2009.

Gonzaga (9-3) can even its conference record with a win Saturday against visiting Pacific. The Tigers (5-7) won their WCC opener Thursday night at Portland, 84-74.

Pacific shot 50 percent (26-for-52) from the field and got a season-high 17 points from Desiree Finnie.

Saturday’s game is the first of three straight at home for GU, which hosts San Francisco and Portland next week.