No. 17 BYU to face Portland in WCC semifinals Monday

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PROVO, Utah – The No. 17 BYU women's basketball team is the No. 1 overall seed at the West Coast Conference Tournament and will play the No. 4 seed, Portland on Monday, March 7 at 12 p.m. PT in the semifinals at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas. 

BYU is getting its second game against the Pilots this year and will be seeking a better result, having suffered its only conference loss in a 75-64 defeat at Portland on Feb. 3.

Monday's game will be televised on BYUtv and also streamed on the WCC Network. 

Ticket packages for the entire tournament are available at BYUtickets.com with individual sessions for sale through the WCC and Orleans Arena HERE

The Cougars earned a bye to the semifinal matchup Monday after finishing 15-1 in WCC play, with an overall record of 25-2. The 25 wins in the regular season bested the previous school record of 24, done three times with the most recent coming in 2016. 

With a win in the semifinals, BYU would advance to the championship game scheduled for Tuesday at 1 p.m. PT at the Orleans Arena. 

1 BYU vs 4 Portland
Monday, March 7
12 p.m. PT
TV/Stream: BYUtv/WCC Network
Live Stats
On Twitter: @BYUwbb

BYU Game Notes (25-2, 15-1)

  • WCC REGULAR-SEASON CHAMPS: BYU won its fifth regular-season conference title under head coach Jeff Judkins with a 15-1 record in league play.
  • The Cougars suffered their only WCC loss of the year on the road at Portland in a 75-64 defeat. BYU is 26-6 against Portland in the all-time series. 
  • BYU won 25 games in the regular season, the most ever in the history of the program. The Cougars had previously won 24 games three different times, all coming under head coach Jeff Judkins (11-12, 13-14, 15-16). The school record for most wins including postseason play is 28, set during the 2013-14 season when BYU advanced to the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Tournament.
  • BYU has won the WCC Tournament three times under head coach Jeff Judkins. The Cougars last won it in 2019 and also won in 2015 and 2012. 
  • Head coach Jeff Judkins won the WCC Coach of the Year for the second-consecutive year. It was his third WCC coaching honor and sixth coach of the year award for his career. Shaylee Gonzales was named the WCC Player of the Year after earning co-player of the year honors last year.
  • In addition to Gonzales, Paisley Harding and Lauren Gustin were also named All-WCC First Team selections while Tegan Graham was an honorable mention.
  • BYU is ranked No. 3 in scoring margin at +21.2 points per game and ranks No. 7 in scoring offense at 79.2 points per game. The Cougars are No. 2 in assists per game (20.3) and No. 2 in assist to turnover ratio (1.55), No. 5 in field goal percentage (47.7) and No. 21 in field goal percentage defense (35.7).

Portland (19-9, 8-7)

  • Portland defeated LMU in the quarterfinals Saturday at the WCC Tournament.
  • The Pilots finished fourth in the regular season in the league with an 8-7 record. 
  • Sophomore forward Alex Fowler was named All-WCC First Team while junior guard Haylee Andrews was a second-teamer
  • The Pilots defeated BYU in Portland on Feb. 3 (75-64)