San Diego @ Gonzaga preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 9, 2020 ) Gonzaga 94, San Diego 50

Fourth-ranked Gonzaga moves on from a rare loss when it hosts San Diego in West Coast Conference play on Thursday. The Bulldogs had their 19-game winning streak halted by BYU last Saturday but can clinch the WCC regular-season crown by beating the Toreros for the 12th straight time and 23rd in the past 24 matchups.

Gonzaga was outplayed in the 91-78 loss at BYU to see its WCC record of 40 straight regular-season conference wins reach an end and sophomore power forward Filip Petrusev said the team's play was the problem, and not the wild atmosphere. “Just us being soft, not playing the right way," Petrusev told reporters. "We just didn’t play the way we’ve played this year, simple as that.” Gonzaga has won the past 20 meetings against the Toreros in Spokane, including all 16 since moving into the McCarthey Athletic Center. San Diego was routed 92-63 at Saint Mary's last Saturday for its third straight loss and seventh in the past eight contests.

TIME: 9 p.m. ET. TV: ROOT Sports, WCC Network

ABOUT SAN DIEGO (9-20, 2-12 WCC): Junior guard Braun Hartfield leads the Toreros with a 14.6 scoring average and he has topped 20 points in three of six games this month. Hartfield tallied just nine points on 4-of-13 shooting in the first meeting with Gonzaga when San Diego shot just 32.6 percent in a 94-50 home loss. Sophomore guard Joey Calcaterra (11.2) is the only other player in double digits for a team that averages 66.1 points per game and shoots 41.7 percent from the field.

ABOUT GONZAGA (27-2, 13-1): Senior forward Killian Tillie has missed nine games due to knee or ankle injuries but played well in the past two games by averaging 20 points and making 15-of-23 field-goal attempts. Tillie, who ranks third on the team in scoring (13.7), may see an early exit if the Bulldogs roll up a huge lead with the team set to host Saint Mary's on Saturday. Petrusev leads Gonzaga in scoring (17.4) and rebounding (7.8) while junior forward Corey Kispert has knocked down a team-leading 71 3-pointers while averaging 14 points.

TIP-INS

1. Gonzaga is 45-4 versus San Diego in coach Mark Few's 21-season tenure.

2. Bulldogs sophomore G Joel Ayayi scored 20 points in last month's win over San Diego but is slumping now by averaging just six over the past five games.

3. The loss to Saint Mary's was the Toreros' fourth by 20 or more this season.

PREDICTION: Gonzaga 95, San Diego 58