one of two road games for the Zags this week
Coming off their first loss in 14 games, the Women will have their work cut out for them against the Pacific Tigers later today in a match set to tip-off at 6pm and showing on ESPN+.
Despite winning the last contest between these two teams 68-64 at home, the Zags did not look particularly impressive in that game that took place less than 4 weeks ago. The Tigers out-rebounded the Bulldogs on the offensive glass 14-9, scored 34 points in the paint compared to just 22 from Gonzaga, and forced 17 turnovers leading to 24 points compared to just 13 and 11, respectively, from the Zags.
As such, I’m sure that Coach Fortier and her staff will be drilling the players this week and looking for more out of this squad on both ends of the floor. That’s not just because of the defeat last time out, but also because this team has just two regular season games remaining before the WCC Tournament begins. Hopefully the regression in quality we saw last week was something reversible like getting a little complacent or overwhelmed by the Senior Night ceremonies because this team deserves to represent the WCC come March.
Since facing off against the Bulldogs, the Tigers have gone 2-3, included a defeat that represented USD’s first conference win of the season, and have seen their standing in the WCC fall to 6th where they’re tied with St. Mary’s. Their next two games will be very important because if they win both of their matches, they’ll be sitting at 11-9 in the WCC, which could propel them up the standings for a possible fourth place position. As such, I’m looking for these Tigers to bring the energy this game to jockey for the most optimal schedule in the WCC Tournament. Well, that and the fact that this Bulldogs team has not handled physical pressure well enough as of late and if the officiating crew tonight is anything like Saturday’s match against USF then it will be a long game.
The Bulldogs, currently tied-first in the WCC with Portland, hold the keys to their destiny thanks to the two wins against the Pilots earlier this season, which means they hold the tie breaker. As such, the Bulldogs will need to either match or exceed the game results earned by the Pilots to reclaim the WCC regular season title, something that Portland has won the last two campaigns. It may not be essential to win the regular season since I don’t think the Zags have a change for an at-large bid the NCAA Tournament, but I think it has the potential to boost this squad’s morale heading into the more important WCC Tournament where they can punch their ticket for March Madness.
Hit the comments below to hsare your thoughts on the match.