WCC Tournament 2013 schedule and bracket: BYU starts tourney, Loyola Marymount looks to continue run
The real action at the WCC Tournament is getting closer, as teams with winning conference records -- Brigham Young and Santa Clara -- play teams that made it through the tourney’s first rounds. Both games are on ESPNU.
USA TODAY Sports
Loyola Marymount’s run thus far in the WCC Tournament has been improbable. After losing 14 games in a row before the tournament, Loyola Marymount has doubled its season win total in conference play in two days. First, it beat 8-seeded Portland in what amounted to a play-in game. Then, it knocked off No. 5-seeded San Francisco behind clutch play by Anthony Ireland, as the conference’s second-leading scorer had four of the team’s five points in an ugly overtime session. Certainly, you’d expect this March tomfoolery to stop once the top half of the bracket got into play. But Santa Clara, for its winning record in WCC play and top-100 Kenpom ranking, was the only team to lose to Loyola Marymount in conference play, as the 5’10 Ireland hung 29 on the Broncos. Perhaps the Lions have life in them. On the other hand, fifth-year senior Kevin Foster hit five of six threes in a 79-56 Santa Clara win the last time these teams met, so maybe not.
Read More: WCC Tournament preview | WCC Tournament home
11:30 p.m. ET, ESPNU: No. 6 San Diego (15-17, 7-9, Kenpom ranking 191) vs. No. 3 BYU (21-10, 10-6, Kenpom ranking 70)
With 10 losses and no strong wins, BYU is well off the bubble, and that won’t change with anything less than a conference tourney win. However, that’s still somewhat of a possibility with a strong scorer in Tyler Haws -- the WCC’s top in terms of points-per-game, a 6’5 Utahn who excels at getting to the line and can heat up from deep, dropping 42 points on Virginia Tech -- and Brandon Davies, who you may remember as the team’s center in the Jimmer Fredette era. That said, the Toreros took one of the games in the season series, although it will be more tough at a neutral site just a day after a hard-fought game against Pepperdine.
An updated bracket can be found here.
WCC Tournament, Paradise, Nevada
Friday, March 8
9:30 p.m., No. 9 Loyola Marymount vs. No. 4 Santa Clara, ESPNU
11:30 p.m., No. 6 San Diego vs. No. 3 BYU, ESPNU
Saturday, March 9
6 p.m., No. 1 Gonzaga vs. Santa Clara/Loyola Marymount, ESPN2
8:30 p.m., No. 2 St. Mary’s vs. San Diego/BYU, ESPN2
Monday, March 11
6 p.m.: Winners of semifinals, ESPN or ESPN2
More from SB Nation:
See More:
