ESPN will televise Gonzaga vs. Saint Mary's showdown on Feb. 3
Game details for a West Coast Conference heavyweight battle between the Gonzaga Bulldogs and Saint Mary's Gaels have been announced by ESPN.
The Bulldogs (13-5, 4-1 WCC) will host the visiting Gaels (14-6, 5-0 WCC) at the McCarthey Athletic Center at 7:30 p.m. PT on Feb. 3. The game will be televised by ESPN as part of a college basketball triple-header.
The Gonzaga-Saint Mary's game will follow an SEC clash between No. 6 Kentucky and No. 5 Tennessee that's set to tip at 5:30 p.m on the same network. No. 3 North Carolina and No. 12 Duke renew their historic rivalry earlier on ESPN at 3:30 p.m.
The Bulldogs and Gaels will get top billing in the late window on ESPN's main channel, while the UCLA vs. Oregon game is scheduled to air on ESPN2 at 7 p.m.
Based on the current NET Rankings, the matchup in Spokane will count as a Quad 1 game for both teams. Saint Mary's is 22nd in the NET while Gonzaga checks in at 30th. The Gaels are 3-4 in Quad 1 games while the Bulldogs are 0-4.
Gonzaga has won the last five head-to-head meetings in Spokane over Saint Mary's, including a 77-68 victory last February. The two rivals met 10 days later in Las Vegas for the WCC Tournament Championship game, in which the Bulldogs routed the Gaels, 77-51, as Drew Timme surpassed Frank Burgess as the program's all-time leading scorer with 18 points.
Either Gonzaga or Saint Mary's has claimed the last 15 WCC Tournament championships, with the Bulldogs owning 12 of those championships since 2009. Gonzaga is 8-3 against Saint Mary's in the title game and 16-3 overall when the two have met in the WCC Tournament.
Gonzaga and Saint Mary's meet in Moraga, California, to close the regular season on March 2.
