SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Fresh off a 2-0 week to open the WCC season, Santa Clara men's basketball is set to host two big conference opponents in No. 21/23 Gonzaga and Saint Mary's. First up will be the Bulldogs, who come to the Leavey Center for a 6:30 p.m. PT showdown on ESPN. Dave Flemming and Sean Farnham will have the call live from Santa Clara. Additionally, Anthony Passarelli and Henry Caruso will be on the audio only call on Sidearm Sports. Both links can be found above.

The Broncos (11-6, 2-0) took down both southern California opponents in the opening week of action, first defeating LMU, 68-57, and Pepperdine, 78-72. Adama-Alpha Bal averaged 24.5 points for the stretch and ranks as the third-leading scorer in the conference in league play, and fourth overall at 15.9 ppg. Carlos Marshall, Jr., who reached 1,000 points for his career against the Lions, averaged 12.5 points per game while Brenton Knapper came out of no where to lead the team in rebounding in both games with seven and nine boards, respectively. 

Santa Clara continues to post solid numbers on both ends of the floor. The Broncos rank third in the WCC in scoring at 76.6 points per game and lead the conference at 37.4 percent from beyond the arc. Defensively, they have held opponents under 38 percent shooting on seven occasions, including against LMU where they limited the Lions to just 29.6 percent - the lowest against a conference opponent since 2014 (Pacific). 

Gonzaga (11-4, 2-0) also began conference play unbeaten with blowout wins over Pepperdine (86-60) and San Diego (101-74). The offense is once again among the best in the nation, averaging a league-best 84.9 points per game (18th nationally). The Zags also lead the league in rebounding (42.47). Wyoming transfer Graham Ike is the team's top scorer at 15.2 ppg and posted five double-doubles on the year. Guard Ryan Nembhard leads the WCC and is 21st nationally with 6.0 assists per game. 

For more information, check the game notes links above.