Elias Ralph’s loyalty paying off for senior wing, Pacific during memorable 2025-26 season | Key matchup

If you ranked the people responsible for rebuilding Pacific’s basketball program after a decade of turmoil and turbulence, second-year coach Dave Smart would be an obvious choice for No. 1 on the list.

Senior wing Elias Ralph might have a strong case for No. 2.

Ralph is leading the Tigers in both points and loyalty points after neglecting to enter the transfer portal last offseason and returning to Stockton, California, where Smart and Pacific are 17-12 overall and still in the mix for a top-four seed at the upcoming West Coast Conference Tournament.

The Tigers still have a few hurdles to overcome to reach that point, including Saturday’s massive test against No. 11 and first-place Gonzaga at McCarthey Athletic Center (6 p.m., KHQ/ESPN+).

Ralph is the only starter and lone rotation player to return to Pacific’s roster in 2025-26. The talented, cerebral wing would have had his choice of high-major options had he entered the portal after averaging 14.8 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.9 assists last season.

Instead, Ralph, an Alberta, Canada, native who played at University of Victoria while Smart was coaching at Canadian powerhouse Carleton University, elected to return to Pacific, where his role on the court and leadership responsibilities have both expanded in year two.

“Everybody likes him, everybody who gets to know him likes him,” Smart said at the WCC’s media day. “He’s hard not to like, he’s as good a person as you’re going to meet. He’s not super vocal as a leader and he wouldn’t pretend that he is, but he’s more vocal than he was last year.

“As an example and as someone to follow and as someone who’s consistently – he competes in practice like he competes in the game.”

A strong and versatile wing, Ralph presents a number of problems for opponents and is averaging 16.6 ppg, 6.8 rpg and 1.9 apg this season. The preseason All-WCC selection can score at all three levels but he’s improved drastically as a 3-point shooter, making 41% of his shots on four attempts per game after connecting on 27.3% last season while shooting 3.3 per game.

In the WCC, only Saint Mary’s point guard Joshua Dent and Portland point guard Joel Foxwell are averaging more minutes than Ralph, who logs 34.3 per game for the Tigers and has played 40 minutes on four occasions, including 42 in an overtime loss to the Pilots.

The 6-foot-7 Ralph will have to deal with Gonzaga’s stable of 6-foot-7 wings on Saturday. Starting forward Jalen Warley will have dibs on the assignment early, but the Pacific senior should also have run-ins with Tyon Grant-Foster, Emmanuel Innocenti and Davis Fogle throughout the game.