SANTA CLARA, Calif. - The top two teams in the West Coast Conference standings are set to square off Saturday evening in Leavey Center. Santa Clara men's basketball, which holds a half-game lead at 13-1, will host No. 12 Gonzaga (12-1) for a 7:30 p.m. PT tip on ESPN. Roxy Bernstein and Corey Williams will have the call live from Leavey Center and fans can also tune in to Anthony Passarelli and Henry Caruso's audio-only call through Sidearm Sports.
THE OPPONENT
Gonzaga, ranked No. 11 in the latest coaches poll and 12th by the Associated Press, is 24-2 overall, a half-game behind the Broncos in the WCC standings at 12-1. The Bulldogs feature the top scoring offense in the conference at 87.4 points per game while also posting a top-25 scoring defense at 66.5 points allowed. Under the direction of Mark Few in his 27th season in Spokane, Gonzaga also ranks top-five nationally in scoring margin (20.9) and turnover margin (4.9). Senior Graham Ike is the WCC’s leading scorer at 19.7 points per game and is second in the league with 8.5 rebounds per contest.
SERIES HISTORY VS. GONZAGA
Gonzaga holds a 73-33 advantage in the all-time series including an 89-77 win earlier this season in Spokane. The last two seasons, however, have seen the teams split the regular season series with SCU winning 77-76 in Leavey Center in 2023-24 and coming away with a 103-99 victory in Spokane last season. Gonzaga holds a 27-21 lead in games played in Santa Clara, and won 95-76 last season at Leavey Center.
LAST TIME AGAINST THE BULLDOGS
Santa Clara gave then-No. 8 Gonzaga everything they could handle in the first half, leading by as much as eight before entering the half tied at 37. The Bulldogs then flipped the script with a 20-2 run that spanned nearly five minutes, spoiling SCU’s hopes of a second-straight win in the Kennel. Graham Ike was a one-man wrecking crew with 34 points and 11 rebounds to power the Bulldogs to the 89-77 win.
LAST TIME OUT
After a rough offensive start that saw the Broncos shoot just under 32 percent in the first half, Santa Clara came out of the locker room with a purpose and shot 58 percent over the final 20 minutes to take control against Seattle. The Broncos built an early 10-point advantage in the half, but were never able to feel comfortable with the Redhawks consistently answering each score down the stretch. SCU finally put the game away in the final two minutes to walk away with the 84-72 victory. Sash Gavalyugov was outstanding off the bench with 21 points (5-9 3PT) while Christian Hammond chipped in 17 points and Allen Graves added 15 to go with five rebounds, five assists and three steals.
A LOOK AT THE RESUME
Santa Clara is making a strong case for their return to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 30 years. The Broncos are 22-5 overall and 13-1 for their best start since 1969-70. They currently rank 41st in the NET, 38th in KenPom and 41st in wins above the bubble (WAB), and hold a 6-4 combined record in quad 1 and 2 games.
BRONCOS ON TOP OF THE STANDINGS
Santa Clara currently finds itself on top of the WCC standings at 13-1. Gonzaga is just behind at 12-1 having played one less game while Saint Mary’s is third at 11-2. This is the first time a program other than the Bulldogs or Gaels has occupied the top spot in the standings at this stage of the season since 2002 when Pepperdine eventually won the regular-season title at 13-1.
ON A STREAK
Santa Clara is currently riding a nine-game win streak - their longest since also winning nine straight in 1994-95. If the streak reaches 10, it will be the longest since the Broncos’ program-record 21-game winning streak in 1968-69 when the Broncos were 27-2 overall.
BEST START SINCE 1969-70
At 22-5, Santa Clara is off to their best start since the 1969-70 campaign, the final year of a historic three-year stretch that saw the Broncos win three consecutive WCC titles and NCAA Tournament appearances.
The Broncos’ 13-1 record in conference play matches the program record for conference wins. Both the 1967-68 and 1968-69 teams were also 13-1. Both of those squads not only won the conference titles, but also advanced to the Elite Eight under the guidance of legendary head coach Dick Garibaldi. Both teams eventually fell victim to Lew Alcindor (better known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) and the UCLA Bruins during their historic run of seven consecutive national titles.
WHAT’S ON THE LINE...
A 23-5 start would rank as the third-best in program history and longest since the 1968-69 Broncos were a remarkable 27-1 prior to falling to UCLA in the Elite Eight.
Best Starts in Program History
1968-69 27-1 (finished 27-2)
1967-68 22-3 (finished 22-4)
1969-70 22-5 (finished 23-6)
2025-26 22-5
23 wins would also tie for the most of the Herb Sendek Era (23-10 in 2022-23) and a 14th WCC victory would be the most in program history.
EYE POPPING NUMBERS IN CONFERENCE SCORING
Santa Clara ranks third nationally in scoring average in conference games (87.8) and are tied for fourth in margin of victory in conference play (16.0).
PROTECTING THE HOME COURT
Following the win over Seattle, Santa Clara remains a perfect 13-0 at Leavey Center this season. The streak is tied for the third-longest in Toso Pavilion/Leavey Center history and sits one win shy of tying for second. It is the Broncos’ longest home winning streak since posting a school-record 17 straight from 2018–19 to 2019–20. SCU is averaging 84.3 points per game on 46.4 percent shooting at home, with a plus-18.6 scoring margin.
TURNING HEADS IN LEAGUE PLAY
Santa Clara is 13-1 in conference play and has done so in dominant fashion. In addition to their scoring average and margin of victory that rank top-five nationally, SCU is shooting 50.2 percent from the field (just behind Gonzaga’s 50.6) and lead the league in 3-pointers per game (10.3), turnover margin (5.0) and steals (10.43). They also rank second in free throw shooting (76.4).
