2021 West Coast Conference Women’s basketball tournament: Matchups, players to know & more
Gonzaga is the No. 1 seed heading into Thursday's tournament and automatically advances to the semifinal round
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The 2021 West Coast Conference women’s basketball tournament will determine which team gets an automatic bid to the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament.
The conference tournament is set to begin on March 4 and will run until March 9. Each game will be played at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas where fans will not be permitted to attend.
The conference features 10 teams, including BYU, Gonzaga, Loyola Marymount, Pacific, Pepperdine, Portland, Saint Mary’s, San Diego, San Francisco, and Santa Clara.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Gonzaga earned the automatic bid.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}MARCH 4 – FIRST ROUND
(8) Loyola Marymount vs. (9) Pepperdine, 85-73
(7) Saint Mary's advances
MARCH 5 - SECOND ROUND
(8) Loyola Marymount def. (5) Portland, 74-56
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}(7) Saint Mary's def. (6) Pacific, 69-55
MARCH 6 - THIRD ROUND
(4) Santa Clara def. (8) Loyola Marymount, 83-68
(3) San Francisco def. (7) Saint Mary's, 69-63
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}MARCH 8 - SEMIFINALS
(1) Gonzaga def. (4) Santa Clara, 72-62
(2) BYU def. (3) San Francisco, 85-55
MARCH 9 - FINALS
(1) Gonzaga def. (2) BYU, 43-42
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5 PLAYERS TO KNOW
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Shaylee Gonzales, BYU: A sophomore at BYU, Gonzales was named 2021 WCC Co-Player of the Year after coming back from a knee injury that saw her miss out on her freshman year. She averaged 17.7 points, 5.4 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 2.6 steals per game.
Jenn Wirth, Gonzaga: One of the WCC biggest offensive threats, Wirth was named 2021 WCC Co-Player of the Year. She averaged 13.5 points, 8.4 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game this season.
Melody Kempton, Gonzaga: Kempton was awarded the Sixth Woman of the Year award after averaging 6.7 points and 3.6 rebounds per game.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Valerie Higgins, Pacific: Higgins was named Defensive Player of the Year after leading the league in steals per game (3.7) and ranking second in rebounds per game (9.8). It was her second time receiving the honor.
Ioanna Krimili, Pacific: Krimili was awarded the Newcomer of the Year award after 18.1 points and 3.5 rebounds per game.