Saint Mary's @ Gonzaga preview

Last Meeting ( Mar 2, 2019 ) Gonzaga 69, St. Mary's 55

Top-ranked Gonzaga looks to win its seventh consecutive West Coast Conference tournament championship when it faces second-seeded Saint Mary's in Tuesday's title game at Las Vegas. The Bulldogs have won 21 straight games and claimed their third straight 30-win season by routing Pepperdine 100-74 in Monday night's semifinals.

The Gaels reached the title game by recording a 69-62 victory over San Diego and their NCAA Tournament hopes may rely on at least giving Gonzaga a fierce battle. That wasn't the case during two regular-season meetings as the Zags defeated Saint Mary's by an average of 31 points, including a 94-46 whipping Feb. 9 in Spokane, Wash. The 48-point margin of defeat was the fourth worst in Gaels' history and the only time they lost by 30 or more points during coach Randy Bennett's 18 seasons. The Bulldogs shot 59.7 percent from the field in the victory over Pepperdine and led by as many as 41 points.

TV: 9 p.m. ET, ESPN

ABOUT SAINT MARY'S (21-11): The Gaels are making a spirited run at the an NCAA bid with eight wins in their past 10 games - both setbacks coming against the Bulldogs. Junior guard Jordan Ford scored 21 points against San Diego for his 20th 20-point effort of the campaign but he averaged just 13.5 points and made 11-of-30 shots in the two contests against Gonzaga. Sophomore forward Malik Fitts recorded 19 points and 12 rebounds against the Toreros for his second double-double in four games and sixth of the season.

ABOUT GONZAGA (30-2): Junior forward Killian Tillie returned from a seven-game absence due to his second foot injury of the season and scored nine points on three 3-pointers and collected six rebounds in 15 minutes against Pepperdine. "It feels great," Tillie said in a postgame interview with ESPN. "My teammates really helped me. I was just focused on making the shots and they went in." Tillie's preseason foot injury opened the door for Brandon Clarke to become a standout and the junior forward had 15 points, seven rebounds, five assists and two blocked shots while increasing his school-record rejections total to 101.

TIP-INS

1. Gonzaga sophomore SG Zach Norvell Jr. scored 18 points on 8-of-10 shooting against Pepperdine.

2. Saint Mary's shot a combined 33 percent in the two losses to Gonzaga and made 6-of-28 3-point attempts.

3. Bulldogs junior F Rui Hachimura, who has scored in double digits in all 31 games, was 15-of-21 shooting in the two regular-season victories over the Gaels.

PREDICTION: Gonzaga 87, Saint Mary's 65