St. Mary’s ends Gonzaga’s WCC tournament streak at Orleans Arena
One play told the story of Tuesday’s West Coast Conference Tournament championship game at Orleans Arena.
St. Mary’s forward Mason Forbes battled for a loose ball in traffic to secure an offensive rebound that he kicked out to guard Aidan Mahaney for a 3-pointer from the top of the key with 4:57 remaining to double the Gaels’ lead.
It was the kind of play that happened far too often for Gonzaga to overcome, as No. 21 St. Mary’s pulled away for a 69-60 victory over the 17th-ranked Bulldogs.
“That was such a big play,” Gonzaga coach Mark Few said. “It went through our hands, and they grabbed it and ended up finding him for a big 3. Then there were a couple plays where we just weren’t very smart in our rotations.”
Mahaney finished 5-for-7 on 3-pointers and a game-high 23 points. The No. 1-seeded Gaels outrebounded No. 2-seeded Gonzaga 39-22 to win their sixth WCC tournament title, including their fourth against the Bulldogs in 14 matchups.
“They’ve helped us become the program we are because we were punching up for a long time trying to do what they’re doing and be as good as they were, and it’s made us good,” St. Mary’s coach Randy Bennett said.
Mahaney was a major reason the Gaels (26-7) overcame their rivals. The sophomore had gone 13-for-36 from the field against Gonzaga (25-7) in the two regular-season meetings, which the teams split, but he wasn’t looking back on those performances.
“My coaches put in some stuff for me and got me in great positions where I could score,” he said. “I just have to trust everything I’ve put into my shot. They weren’t falling for a while, and I just went back in the gym and started working even harder.”
Center Mitchell Saxen had 19 points and 15 rebounds for St. Mary’s, leading the way in a dominant performance on the glass.
“We really pride ourselves on (rebounding), and it’s probably where we won the game and separated ourselves a bit,” he said. “Anytime we give one up, we don’t feel like that should happen.”
Forbes, who left the game late after taking a hard fall and was unavailable for comment, had four offensive rebounds. None was bigger than the one he kicked out to Mahaney for the 3-pointer to give the Gaels a 58-52 lead.
“That was so huge,” Mahaney said. “Credit to him. We pride ourselves on offensive rebounds, and we’re one of the best at that in the country.”
It capped a pivotal 7-0 run after Gonzaga had taken its only lead on two free throws by forward Anton Watson, who led the Bulldogs with 18 points, with 8:22 remaining.
St. Mary’s, which led by as many as 11 points early in the second half, turned an offensive rebound into two free throws by Saxen on the next possession. Forbes then drove for a dunk and grabbed the offensive rebound that led to the pivotal shot by Mahaney on the next possession.
“It just kind of came down to the last few minutes,” Few said. “They made plays, and we just came up a little dry on the offensive end.”
The loss broke a run of four straight titles and 10 in 11 years for Gonzaga, whose women’s team also lost Tuesday.
Forward Kennedy Dickie scored 16 points to lead Portland to a 67-66 win over the Bulldogs in the championship game.
Guard Kaylynne Truong missed two 3-point attempts in the final minute after her jumper got Gonzaga within one with 1:16 remaining.
Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AdamHillLVRJ on X.