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2023 West Coast Conference Men’s Basketball Tournament Basics

Dates

• Thursday, March 2 (first round)
• Friday, March 3 (second round)
• Saturday, March 4 (quarterfinals)
• Monday, March 6 (semifinals)
• Tuesday, March 7 (championship)

Format

Stepladder bracket, with the bottom four teams starting in Thursday’s first round.

Site

The Orleans Arena is Las Vegas hosts, as it has since the 2009 event.

Participants

All 10 WCC teams will participate. This will be BYU’s final appearance before heading off to the Big 12.

Downloadable Bracket

Schedule

All times are p.m. Eastern. unless noted.

First Round (Thurs., March 2)

Game 1: (9) San Diego (11-20, 4-12) 74, (8) Portland 92
Game 2: (10) Pepperdine (9-22, 2-14) 71, (7) Pacific 84

Second Round (Fri., March 3)

Game 3: (8) Portland (14-19, 5-11) 71, (5) BYU 82
Game 4: (7) Pacific (15-18, 7-9) 63, (6) San Francisco 80

Quarterfinals (Sat., March 4)

Game 5: (5) BYU 73, (4) Loyola Marymount (19-126, 9-7) 63
Game 6: (6) San Francisco 93, (3) Santa Clara (23-9, 11-5) 87 (OT)

Semifinals (Mon., March 6)

Game 7: (5) BYU (19-15, 7-9) 69, (1) Saint Mary’s 76
Game 8: (6) San Francisco (20-14, 7-9) 73, (2) Gonzaga 84

Championship (Tues., March 7)

Game 9: (2) GONZAGA (27-5, 14-2) 77, (1) Saint Mary’s (26-7, 14-2) 51

Mayhem Potential Since 2011

Data originally posted by Bob Vetrone Jr. on Twitter in 2020 with my own additions for the seasons beyond.

No tournament has been dominated by the top two seeds as much as the WCC’s. Since moving to the Orleans Arena in 2009, every single champion has been either the No. 1 or 2 seed. In fact, only Gonzaga and Saint Mary’s have won in that span. The Bulldogs have 11 titles since 2009, with the Gaels claiming the other three. In fact, the pair have dominated final appearances in that time as well. BYU is the only other team to reach the WCC final since 2009, and the Cougars have four losses to Gonzaga to show for it.

• 1 seed (9): 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2021, 2022
• 2 seed (3): 2011, 2016, 2019

NCAA Seeding Record Since 2011

Years with an NCAA win are in bold.

• 1 seed (5): 2013 (automatic), 2017 (automatic), 2019 (at-large), 2021 (automatic), 2022 (automatic)
• 2 seed (1): 2015 (automatic)
• 4 seed (1): 2018
• 5 seed (1): 2022 (at-large)
• 6 seed (1): 2021 (at-large)
• 7 seed (3): 2012 (automatic), 2012 (at-large), 2017 (at-large)
• 8 seed (1): 2014 (automatic)
• 10 seed (2): 2014 (at-large), 2022 (at-large)
• 11 seed (5): 2011, 2013 (at-large, First Four), 2015 (at-large, First Four), 2016, 2019 (automatic)
• 14 seed (1): 2014 (at-large, First Four)

While Gonzaga regularly earns top 4 seeds at this point, the highest seed earned by another WCC team is the 5 Saint Mary’s recorded last season. The Gaels should equal that this season at a minimum.

Last NCAA Tournament Appearances

Gonzaga: 2022 (1 seed, automatic, Sweet 16)—2020 WCC Tournament Champion
Saint Mary’s: 2022 (5 seed, at-large, 2nd Round)
San Francisco: 2022 (10 seed, at-large, 1st Round)
BYU: 2021 (6 seed, at-large, 1st Round)
Pacific: 2013 (15 seed, Round of 64, Big West member)
San Diego: 2008 (13 seed, 2nd Round)
Pepperdine: 2002 (10 seed, 1st Round)
Portland: 1996 (14 seed, automatic, 1st Round)
Santa Clara: 1996 (10 seed, at-large, 2nd Round)
Loyola Marymount: 1990 (11 seed, Elite Eight)

All 10 current WCC members have qualified for at least one NCAA Tournament, though three teams have to go back to the 20th century to relive their last trips.