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GAME NOTES: First place in the West Coast Conference is on the line, as the Saint Mary's-CA Gaels take on the 16th-ranked Gonzaga Bulldogs tonight at the McCarthey Athletic Center in Spokane.

The Gaels enter the contest trying to avenge their lone league loss, as they were defeated by Gonzaga, 89-82, back on January 14th. Since that defeat, SMC has ripped off six straight wins to move slightly ahead of Gonzaga for first place at 8-1 within the conference. On Saturday, the team downed San Francisco, 73-57, to improve to a healthy 21-3 overall. The Gaels now return back to the road, where they own a perfect 8-0 record, including a 4-0 mark versus WCC foes.

As for Gonzaga, it had sole possession of first place in the league standings until a surprising 81-77 overtime loss at San Francisco on January 30th. The team has since bounced back with two straight wins and that includes a 66-58 besting of Memphis in a non-conference affair on Saturday. The Bulldogs are now 19-4 overall and they trail SMC by just a half-game in the WCC standings at 7-1.

The Bulldogs lead the all-time series with SMC, 51-23, and they have won five straight and 25 of the last 28 meetings.

The Gaels were stout on defense in their last game, forcing 15 turnovers and holding San Francisco to a dismal 33.9 percent shooting performance from the floor in a 73-57 victory. SMC scored 16 points off those giveaways and had just nine turnovers itself. Omar Samhan led the charge with an all-around effort of 24 points, 10 boards and seven blocks. It marked the 37th career double-double for Samhan, who paces SMC with 21.7 ppg, 11.1 rpg and 3.0 bpg for the season. Mickey McConnell is a distant second with 13.8 ppg and he hands out a team-high 5.3 apg, while shooting an impressive 52.9 percent from long range. Matthew Dellavedova tacks on 12.5 ppg and 4.7 apg, while Ben Allen brings 10.8 ppg and 7.5 rpg to the rotation.

The Bulldogs knocked down 41.1 percent of their attempts from the floor and 7- of-17 from three-point range, as they downed Memphis over the weekend. Matt Bouldin led the way with 19 points and three assists, while Robert Sacre and Steven Gray checked in with 13 and 12 points, respectively. For the season, Bouldin tops the roster in scoring at 16.7 ppg and he is also grabbing 4.6 rpg and distributing a team-best 4.1 apg. Elias Harris is another threat for the Bulldogs and he produces 15.6 ppg and a team-high 8.3 rpg. Gray adds 13.4 ppg and 4.5 rpg to the mix, while Sacre contributes 10.1 ppg and 5.2 rpg.

This is as big as it gets in the WCC, as the winner will have the inside track to the league crown. The Bulldogs already defeated the Gaels on the road this season, so look for them to get the job done on their home floor to complete the sweep.