NCAA Basketball: North Carolina, Kentucky, Auburn rise in latest top 25 power rankings
By Joey Loose
20. Saint Mary’s (24-7)
Saint Mary’s are this year’s regular season champions of the WCC. That’s an unusual feat for the Gaels, as Gonzaga has typically won the league with Saint Mary’s right behind them more often than not. This program used a 16-game winning streak to power to that league title, even surpassing Gonzaga in what felt like a down year for those Bulldogs.
The Gaels have been sitting at home all week, waiting for their time to come in the WCC Tournament. As we know, that winning streak was snapped last week, falling at home to Gonzaga in their final regular season game. That game was certainly disappointing for the Gaels but does nothing to undermine what they’ve accomplished this season, including a win in Spokane at the beginning of February.
With just two losses in the last three months, Saint Mary’s has been one of the nation’s hottest teams, even if a lot of that has come against weaker WCC teams. The Gaels are gearing up for a potential third matchup against Gonzaga in the WCC Tournament final and look to make some noise in the Big Dance as well.