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Gonzaga Basketball

Gonzaga puts unbeaten WCC record on line against Loyola Marymount

Loyola Marymount is probably right where it should be in sixth place in the West Coast Conference standings, even if it’s not what coaches predicted in the preseason poll.

That’s nothing new for the Lions.

LMU (13-7, 3-3 WCC) was pegged for ninth place by the coaches but has a shot at cracking the upper tier. The Lions went the opposite direction last season when they were picked fourth and finished ninth .

Two years ago, coaches projected LMU for seventh place in head coach Stan Johnson’s first season. The Lions went 7-5 in conference, third best by record, but they were seeded fifth in KenPom’s adjusted win percentage metrics, used when teams’ schedules were impacted by COVID-19.

LMU is the next assignment for Gonzaga, which has taken a slightly different path than in past seasons, but the Zags (16-3, 5-0) are still in a familiar position, sharing first place with Saint Mary’s.

The Lions have victories over Wake Forest (tied for second in the ACC), Nevada (third in the Mountain West) and BYU (third in the WCC). They also find themselves fifth in scoring offense and fifth in scoring defense in the conference. They have 251 assists this season and 251 turnovers.

LMU relies on its physical style, depth and the play of senior standouts Cam Shelton and Keli Leaupepe.

The 6-foot-2 Shelton averages 18.5 points, 5.9 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game. The 6-6, 240-pound Leaupepe is having a career year at 14.4 points and 6.9 boards. The Australian native leads the team at 46.2% behind the 3-point line.

“Stan is a good coach, man, he does a good job,” Gonzaga coach Mark Few said of LMU coach Stan Johnson. “They play super, super hard, they’re super physical. Leaupepe is back for another year. He’s just so big, strong and athletic. Like (Portland’s Tyler) Anderson, he’s just a good basketball player and a tough matchup.

“They’ve really had some nice wins. They’ve been a tough out for pretty much everybody.”

LMU’s most lopsided defeat was by 16 points against Colorado State. The Lions fell 76-62 to Saint Mary’s in Moraga, California, but they’re coming off a 98-84 win over San Diego.

Shelton and Leaupepe combined for 46 points, 12 rebounds, eight assists and 14 of 14 free-throw shooting against the Toreros. The bench contributed 46 points to LMU’s highest point total in conference since 2016.

Gonzaga rallied for narrow road wins over San Francisco, Santa Clara and BYU, marking the first time the Zags have had three consecutive single-digit conference wins in two decades.

The Zags breezed past visiting Portland 115-75 Saturday to extend their home winning streak to 75 games. Of those 75, 68 have been by double figures. Twelve Zags played and 10 scored as the bench accounted for 50 points against the Pilots.

“They play so hard in practice for us, give us good looks every day on the scout. To be able to have them come in and play is awesome,” forward Ben Gregg said of the bench.

“It was a good way to end the week and we’ve got two more big ones (LMU on Thursday and Pacific on Saturday) so we’re going to be fresh and ready to go for sure.”

Gonzaga has won 25 straight vs. the Lions, dating to 2010. One of the reasons GU has claimed 10 straight WCC regular-season titles – nine outright, one shared – is its 116-0 record since February 2014 against conference teams other than Saint Mary’s or BYU.

The Zags have several lengthy streaks they’re trying to maintain. They’ve won 11 consecutive games and 93 in a row against unranked teams.

They’re 100-0 in Quad 2, 3 and 4 games since the NET rankings were instituted in 2018-19. Gonzaga is No. 10 in the NET with Loyola Marymount at No. 99, which makes this a Quad 3 game (home vs. opponent between 71-160). GU is 38-14 in Quad 1 games.