Tag: West Coast Conference

Grand Canyon and SeattleU accept invites to WCC starting in 2025

The West Coast Conference will add Grand Canyon and SeattleU as full time members starting in the 2025-26 season.

The West Coast Conference approved the addition of both Grand Canyon University and Seattle University as members, with both schools accepting the invitation on Friday.

The two programs will become the 10th and 11th full-time members of the conference starting on July 1, 2025.

“We are thrilled to welcome two institutions of higher education that each will make significant contributions to the future of the West Coast Conference,” Gonzaga University President and Chair of the WCC Presidents’ Council Dr. Thayne McCulloh said. “While each university has a unique and distinctive character, both are deeply invested in the welfare of their students and surrounding communities, are making significant investments in their athletics programs and facilities, and will enhance the competitive profile of the West Coast Conference.”

The WCC previously added Oregon State and Washington State as partial members on a temporary basis while the two programs search for a new home following the dismantling of the Pac-12.

Now the conference strikes again, adding a Grand Canyon program coached by Bryce Drew who has made the NCAA Tournament in three of the past four years, advancing for the first time last year after beating new conference opponent Saint Mary’s.

SeattleU has won 20 or more games in three straight seasons as well, and with new facilities and a promising young coach in Chris Victor it was time for the WCC to cash in and improve the conference’s long term stability in case Gonzaga’s pursuit of a power conference comes to fruition.

Pac-12 fans and the rest of the nation react to Oregon State and Washington State joining the WCC in basketball

This was not expected. Welcome to realignment!

The changes keep coming in conference realignment. With the Pac-12 Conference, as we know it, coming to an end, Washington State and Oregon State are looking for what’s next.

They formed an alliance with the Mountain West Conference in football and will play a schedule against those programs in 2024. The latest news is that they will join the West Coast Conference (WCC) in basketball and other non-football sports in a surprising turn of events. That vote occurred Thursday morning, as reported by Ross Dellenger of Yahoo! Sports.

It certainly was a shock to much of the sports world, but now Oregon State and Washington State are essentially all set to play Gonzaga and others next season … assuming Gonzaga doesn’t move to the Big 12 or elsewhere.

Let’s see what Pac-12 fans and others around the country had to say about this latest realignment curveball:

Bad beat: BYU inexplicably fouled Saint Mary’s with a second left to blow the cover

BYU blew the backdoor cover.

Covering as 6.5-point underdogs shouldn’t have even been an option for BYU after trailing by as much as 26 points in their West Coast Conference Tournament semifinal game Monday against BYU.

But as the final seconds of the game winded down, Cougars bettors were somehow in the green after a monster second-half surge cut the deficit to three with about 30 seconds left. The incredible backdoor cover was secured!

And then it wasn’t.

Saint Mary’s scored four straight points from there, and it was the very last cover-blowing point that was most heart-breaking. With the game all but decided, a BYU player fouled Saint Mary’s with less than a second left.

That extra free throw made the difference.

Adding to the heartbreak for BYU bettors is the missed free throw that led to the rebound and foul. It was third straight miss from the line for Atiki Ally. Had he made just one of them, the foul at the end wouldn’t have mattered.

[mm-video type=video id=01gtw7n7naj4nc3f439g playlist_id=none player_id=01gp1x90emjt3n6txc image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01gtw7n7naj4nc3f439g/01gtw7n7naj4nc3f439g-2a7934933db70d873c638cc84b11b390.jpg]

West Coast Conference to honor Celtics great Bill Russell with ‘Recognition Week’ to start February

The West Coast Conference is honoring the late, great Bill Russell with “Bill Russell Recognition Week,” celebrating his accomplishments on the court and activism off of it.

The West Coast Conference is honoring the late Boston Celtics great Bill Russell with “Bill Russell Recognition Week,” celebrating his accomplishments on the court and activism off of it during Conference men’s and women’s basketball games in the first week of the month of February 2023, according to a release by the WCC.

Per the release, student-athletes ” will wear a shirt representing Russell’s famous No. 6 during pregame activities” and the league will also air a tribute video to commemorate Russell’s legacy that “will air prior to each game” with the WCC recognizing Russell and Black History Month on their digital platforms and broadcasts.

In 2020, the WCC instituted the “Russell Rule,” which requires “each member institution to include a member of a traditionally underrepresented community in the pool of final candidates for every athletic director, senior administrator, head coach and full-time assistant coach position in the athletic department ”

The policy, named in honor of the Celtics great, has since resulted in more than half of such hires coming from such groups, per the WCC release.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

[mm-video type=video id=01gqg9tj9mmj1yr5nr6h playlist_id=01eqbzegwgnrje4tv2 player_id=01f5k5xtr64thj7fw2 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01gqg9tj9mmj1yr5nr6h/01gqg9tj9mmj1yr5nr6h-a6f8529006faae0786f8b071bf45168c.jpg]

[lawrence-related id=116498,116462,116496,116494,116620,116211]

[listicle id=116625]

[listicle id=116621]

[listicle id=116437]

[listicle id=116517]

Notre Dame roster for 2021-22 season

Who will be hooping it up for the Irish this season?

It feels like college basketball remains far away, but Midnight Madness just happened, so it’s closer than you think. To that end, we should look at who makes up Notre Dame’s roster for the upcoming season. Many believe this is the team that can get the program out of the doldrums and back on track towards respectability. A major step in getting people to believe that would be the Irish’s first NCAA Tournament selection since 2017, which also was the last year they finished above .500 against ACC opponents.

This will be the 22nd iteration of the Irish with Mike Brey as coach. Despite having more wins than anyone in program history, he has two losing seasons in the past three and three losing conference records over the past four years. If he isn’t able to get this group to reach its full potential, questions about his future in South Bend certainly will arise. Here are the players who could determine where both Brey and the program headed going forward:

Gonzaga at BYU college basketball odds, picks and best bets

Previewing Saturday’s Gonzaga Bulldogs at BYU Cougars sports betting odds and lines, with college basketball betting picks, tips and bets.

The Gonzaga Bulldogs (27-1, 13-0 WCC) head south to battle the BYU Cougars (22-7, 11-3 WCC) at Marriott Center in Provo, Utah at 10 p.m. ET Saturday. We analyze the Gonzaga-BYU odds and betting lines, while providing college basketball betting tips and advice on this matchup.

The Bulldogs are ranked 2nd in the USA TODAY Sports men’s basketball coaches poll.

Gonzaga at BYU: Three things you need to know

1. Gonzaga stumbled to a season-low 71 points last time out, but the Bulldogs still topped San Francisco 71-54 while narrowly covering the 16.5-point number. The Bulldogs showed that even at their worst they can still get the victory.

2. The last time these teams met it was Gonzaga winning 92-69 to easily cover a 13-point spread back in Spokane Jan.18. The over (158) connected, as well.

3. The Cougars have registered seven straight wins since losing at San Francisco Jan. 25. BYU has also won 12 in a row at Marriott Center since their lone setback of the season back on Nov. 9 against San Diego State.

Get some action on this game or others by placing a bet at BetMGM!

Gonzaga at BYU: Odds, betting lines and picks

Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated at 9:30 a.m. ET.

Prediction

Gonzaga 88, BYU 76

Moneyline (ML)

Gonzaga (-189) will continue its winning streak, but expect the ‘Dogs to be tested early and often by BYU (+155) before pulling away. AVOID and look to the line for much better value.

Against the Spread (ATS)

The BULLDOGS (-4.5, -106) will give bettors a little heart failure early on, as the Cougars (+4.5, -115) will give them their best shot. While it might be a close game, with the Cougars perhaps even winning at the break, look for the Bulldogs to pull away in the final 10 minutes of this game for the victory and cover. Last season, Gonzaga won 93-63 at Provo on Jan. 31, 2019. Expect this one to be a little tighter.

Over/Under (O/U)

OVER 158.5 (-110) is the play, although it might be really close. The Over has cashed in six straight at home for BYU while going 5-0 in the past five on the road for Gonzaga. As mentioned, the Over also hit in the first meeting between these two earlier in the season.

Want some action in this one? Place a bet at BetMGM now. For more sports betting picks and tips, visit SportsbookWire.com.

Follow @JoeWilliamsVI and @SportsbookWire on Twitter.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services.  Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

[lawrence-newsletter]

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=11866]