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Saint Mary’s Gaels (17-6, 8-0 WCC) at Gonzaga Bulldogs (16-5, 7-1 WCC)
Spokane, Washington; Saturday, 10:30 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Saint Mary’s (CA) takes on the Gonzaga Bulldogs after Augustas Marciulionis scored 20 points in Saint Mary’s (CA)’s 82-77 win against the Santa Clara Broncos.
The Bulldogs are 10-1 on their home court. Gonzaga ranks second in the WCC with 16.3 assists per game led by Ryan Nembhard averaging 6.0.
The Gaels are 8-0 against WCC opponents. Saint Mary’s (CA) ranks second in the WCC with 24.9 defensive rebounds per game led by Joshua Jefferson averaging 4.8.
Gonzaga averages 6.8 made 3-pointers per game, 1.8 more made shots than the 5.0 per game Saint Mary’s (CA) allows. Saint Mary’s (CA) has shot at a 45.4% clip from the field this season, 6.1 percentage points above the 39.3% shooting opponents of Gonzaga have averaged.
The Bulldogs and Gaels square off Saturday for the first time in conference play this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Graham Ike is shooting 61.4% and averaging 15.5 points for the Bulldogs. Nolan Hickman is averaging 2.7 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games for Gonzaga.
Aidan Mahaney is shooting 34.0% from beyond the arc with 2.3 made 3-pointers per game for the Gaels, while averaging 14.1 points. Marciulionis is shooting 42.1% and averaging 14.0 points over the last 10 games for Saint Mary’s (CA).
LAST 10 GAMES: Bulldogs: 8-2, averaging 87.9 points, 38.6 rebounds, 17.4 assists, 8.2 steals and 4.1 blocks per game while shooting 52.8% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 69.8 points per game.
Gaels: 9-1, averaging 75.2 points, 35.9 rebounds, 17.5 assists, 7.1 steals and 4.1 blocks per game while shooting 48.3% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 58.0 points.
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.