The West Coast Conference (WCC) — known as the California Basketball Association from 1952 to 1956 and then as the West Coast Athletic Conference until 1989 — is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with NCAA Division I consisting of nine member schools across the states of California, Oregon, and Washington.
Mark Norman Few is an American college basketball coach who has been the head coach at Gonzaga University since 1999. He has served on Gonzaga's coaching staff since 1989, and has led the Bulldogs from mid-major obscurity to consistent NCAA tournament contenders. During his tenure as head coach, Few has led the Bulldogs to the NCAA Tournament every season, a stretch that has garnered the Bulldogs recognition as a major basketball power despite playing in a mid-major conference. In his 25 seasons as head coach, his teams have won at least a share of 22 WCC regular season titles and 19 WCC tournament titles, and have participated in the National Championship game twice.
The BYU Cougars men's basketball team represents Brigham Young University in NCAA Division I basketball play. Established in 1902, the team has won 27 conference championships, 3 conference tournament championships and 2 NIT Tournaments, and competed in 30 NCAA tournaments. It currently competes in the Big 12 Conference. From 1999 to 2011, the team competed in the Mountain West Conference, followed by 12 seasons in the West Coast Conference. On September 10, 2021, the Big 12 Conference unanimously accepted BYU's application for membership, and BYU officially joined the conference for the 2023–24 season. The team is coached by Kevin Young.
The Gonzaga Bulldogs are an intercollegiate men's basketball program representing Gonzaga University. The school competes in the West Coast Conference in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The Gonzaga Bulldogs play home basketball games at the McCarthey Athletic Center in Spokane, Washington, on the university campus.
Kelly Lee Graves is the current head women's basketball coach at the University of Oregon. Previously, Graves was the head women's basketball coach at St. Mary's from 1997 to 2000, as well as Gonzaga University from 2000 to 2014. He was formerly an assistant coach for the Portland Pilots (1994–1997) and St. Mary Gaels, where he later got his first head coaching stint with the Gaels from 1997 to 2000. From the 2004–2005 season to the 2013–2014 season, he guided Gonzaga to ten consecutive West Coast Conference regular season titles. The 2007 team went 13–1 in conference play, and later won the WCC conference tournament. The school also received its first ever NCAA tournament appearance. He was named WCC co-coach of the year for his accomplishments. In 2005, 2010, and 2011, Gonzaga went undefeated in WCC regular season play.
Lisa Mispley Fortier is an American basketball coach, currently the head coach of the women's basketball team at Gonzaga University.
The 2014–15 Gonzaga Bulldogs women's basketball team represented Gonzaga University in the 2014–15 college basketball season. The Bulldogs, members of the West Coast Conference, were led by new head coach Lisa Fortier; she replaced Kelly Graves, who left to take the head coaching vacancy at Oregon. The Zags played their home games at the McCarthey Athletic Center on the university campus in Spokane, Washington. They finished the season 26-8, 12-4 in WCC play to win the WCC regular season title. They advanced to the semifinals to WCC women's tournament, where they lost to BYU. They received at-large bid to the NCAA women's basketball tournament, where they upset George Washington in the first round, Oregon State in the second round, before losing to Tennessee in the Sweet Sixteen to end their Cinderella run.
The 2015–16 Gonzaga Bulldogs men's basketball team represented Gonzaga University in the 2015–16 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team was led by head coach Mark Few, who was in his 17th season as head coach. The team played its home games at McCarthey Athletic Center, which had a capacity of 6,000. The Bulldogs played in their 36th season as a member of the West Coast Conference. They finished the season 28–8, 15–3 in WCC play to finish in a share for the WCC regular season championship. They defeated Portland, BYU, and Saint Mary's to be champions of the WCC tournament and earn the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. As a #11 seed, they defeated Seton Hall and Utah to advance to the Sweet Sixteen where they lost to Syracuse. The final AP Poll is the most recent poll in which Gonzaga was unranked until 2023–24, when they were unranked for 6 weeks.
The 2016–17 West Coast Conference men's basketball season began with practices on September 30, 2016 and ended with the 2017 West Coast Conference men's basketball tournament March 2–7, 2017. The regular season began on November 11, 2016, with the conference schedule starting December 29, 2016. This was the 66th season for WCC men's basketball, and the 28th under its current name of "West Coast Conference". The conference was founded in 1952 as the California Basketball Association, became the West Coast Athletic Conference in 1956, and dropped the word "Athletic" in 1989.
The 2017–18 Saint Mary's Gaels men's basketball team represented Saint Mary's College of California during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team was led by head coach Randy Bennett in his 17th season at Saint Mary's. The Gaels played their home games at the McKeon Pavilion in Moraga, California as members of the West Coast Conference. They finished the season 30–6, 16–2 in West Coast Conference play to finish in second place. As the No. 2 seed in the WCC tournament, they defeated Pepperdine in the quarterfinals before losing to BYU in the semifinals. They were one of the last four teams not selected for the NCAA tournament and as a result earned a No. 1 seed in the National Invitation Tournament where they defeated Southeastern Louisiana in the first round and Washington in the second round before losing to Utah in the quarterfinals.
The 2018–19 Gonzaga Bulldogs men's basketball team represented Gonzaga University, located in Spokane, Washington. in the 2018–19 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team was led by head coach Mark Few, in his 20th season as head coach. This was the Bulldogs' 15th season at the on-campus McCarthey Athletic Center and 39th season as a member of the West Coast Conference. They finished the season 33-4, 16-0 to finish in 1st place. In the WCC Tournament, they defeated Pepperdine in the semifinals before losing in the championship game to Saint Mary’s. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament where they defeated Fairleigh Dickinson, Baylor and Florida State to make the Elite Eight. In the Elite Eight, they lost to Texas Tech.
The 2019–20 BYU Cougars men's basketball team represented Brigham Young University in the 2019–20 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. It was head coach Mark Pope's first season as BYU's head coach and the Cougars ninth season as members of the West Coast Conference (WCC). The Cougars played their home games at the Marriott Center in Provo, Utah. They finished the season 24–8, 13–3 in WCC play to finish in second place. They lost in the semifinals of the WCC tournament to Saint Mary's. Despite being a virtual lock to receive an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament, all postseason play was cancelled amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 2019–20 West Coast Conference men's basketball season began with practices in September 2019 and will end with the 2020 West Coast Conference Men's Basketball Tournament in March 2020. This is the 69th season for WCC men's basketball, and the 31st under its current name of "West Coast Conference". The conference was founded in 1952 as the California Basketball Association, became the West Coast Athletic Conference in 1956, and dropped the word "Athletic" in 1989.
The 2020–21 BYU Cougars men's basketball team represented Brigham Young University in the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. It was head coach Mark Pope's second season as BYU's head coach and the Cougars tenth season as members of the West Coast Conference (WCC). The Cougars played their home games at the Marriott Center in Provo, Utah. They finished the season 20-7, 10-3 in WCC Play to finish in 2nd place. They beat Pepperdine in the semifinals of the WCC tournament before losing in the championship game to Gonzaga. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament where they lost in the First Round to UCLA.
The 2020–21 Saint Mary's Gaels men's basketball team represented Saint Mary's College of California during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team were led by head coach Randy Bennett in his 20th season at Saint Mary's. The Gaels played their home games at the University Credit Union Pavilion in Moraga, California as members of the West Coast Conference. They finished the season 14-10, 4-6 to finish in 7th place. They defeated Pepperdine in the quarterfinals in the WCC Tournament before losing in the semifinals to Gonzaga. They received an invitation to the NIT where they lost in the first round to Western Kentucky.
The 2020–21 BYU Cougars women's volleyball team represented Brigham Young University in the 2020–21 NCAA Division I women's volleyball season. The Cougars were led by sixth year head coach Heather Olmstead and played their home games at the Smith Fieldhouse. The Cougars were members of the WCC.
The 2020–21 BYU Cougars women's soccer team represented BYU during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I women's soccer season. The Cougars were coached for a 26th consecutive season by Jennifer Rockwood, who was co-coach in 1995 and became the solo head coach in 1996. Before 1995 BYU women's soccer competed as a club team and not as a member of the NCAA. Overall, the Cougars have made the NCAA tournament in 20 of the 25 seasons that Rockwood has been the head coach. Joining Rockwood as assistant coaches are Brent Anderson and Steve Magleby with volunteer assistants Rachel Jorgensen and McKinzie Young. The Cougars came off of a season where they were first in the WCC and went 21–1–1, 8–0–1 in the WCC with the only loss coming to eventual College Cup Champion Stanford. The Cougars were picked to finish as champs by the WCC media. Due to the COVID-19 coronavirus, the women's soccer team practiced during the fall of 2020 and are playing a spring 2021 season with the NCAA Tournament also taking place in spring 2021.
The 2021–22 Gonzaga Bulldogs men's basketball team represented Gonzaga University, located in Spokane, Washington, in the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team, also unofficially nicknamed the "Zags", is led by head coach Mark Few, in his 23rd season as head coach. This is the Bulldogs' 18th season at the on-campus McCarthey Athletic Center and 42nd season as a member of the West Coast Conference (WCC). They finished the season 28-4, 13-1 in WCC Play to finish as WCC regular season champions. They defeated San Francisco and Saint Mary’s to be champions of the WCC tournament. They received the WCC’s automatic bid to the NCAA tournament where they defeated Georgia State and Memphis to advance to the Sweet Sixteen where they lost to Arkansas.
The 2023–24 BYU Cougars men's basketball team represented Brigham Young University during the 2023–24 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Cougars were led by fifth-year head coach Mark Pope and played their home games at Marriott Center in Provo, Utah as first-year members of the Big 12 Conference. They finished the season 23–11, 10–8 in Big 12 play to finish in a tie for fifth place. As the No. 5 seed in the Big 12 tournament, they defeated UCF in the second round before losing to Texas Tech. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 6 seed in the East region. The Cougars lost in the first round to Duquesne.
The 2024–25 BYU Cougars men's basketball team represents Brigham Young University during the 2024–25 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Cougars are led by first-year head coach Kevin Young and play their home games at Marriott Center in Provo, Utah as second-year members of the Big 12 Conference.
