SPOKANE, Wash. – Looking to knock off the first-place team in the conference standings, the Pacific men's basketball program will head to No. 11 Gonzaga for a 6 p.m. tip Saturday at the McCarthey Athletic Center.
 
The Tigers (17-12, 8-8 WCC) are going for their first-ever road win at Gonzaga (26-2, 14-1 WCC) in program history. Pacific's only win over the Bulldogs came at home on Dec. 23, 1976.
 
It will be a stiff challenge for the Tigers, who rank No. 112 out of 365 in the NCAA NET Rankings, while the Bulldogs are atop the WCC at No. 5. Gonzaga is 12-0 at home this season and its only conference loss was an 87-80 decision at Portland.
 
Pacific currently sits in fourth-place in the conference standings but is in a tight cluster with Oregon State (7-8 WCC), Washington State (7-8 WCC) and San Francisco (7-9 WCC) to maintain its position. The No. 3-4 seeds will earn a bye to the fourth round / quarterfinals of the WCC Tournament on Sunday, March 8.
 
The Tigers continue to be guided by senior Elias Ralph who posted a team-high 16 points in the team's last outing at Washington State on Wednesday. Ralph leads the team in both scoring (16.6 ppg) and rebounding (6.8 rpg) and has recorded 970 points and 18 double-doubles in two seasons at Pacific.
 
Senior TJ Wainwright averages in double-figures with 13.7 points per game and is shooting .399 from long range and .928 from the free throw line. He's shooting .435 from beyond-the-arc in conference.
 
Senior Jaden Clayton ranks 21st in the nation and second in the WCC in assists with 6.1 per game. He's up to 986 career points in four Division I seasons.
 
In conference games, senior Justin Rochelin is averaging 11.5 points and 6.4 rebounds per game while shooting .467 from three-point range.
 
Gonzaga has won four straight since its defeat to Portland and is coming off back-to-back road wins over Santa Clara 94-86 and San Francisco 80-59.
 
The Bulldogs rank top-five in the nation in turnover margin (+4.9), scoring margin (+20.4), field goal percentage (.516) and bench points per game (35.7). Graham Ike leads the team with 19.9 points and 8.6 rebounds per game and has posted 13 double-doubles.
 
Saturday's game can be watched on ESPN+ or heard live for free on Fox Sports AM 1280 with Zack Bayrouty as the voice of the Tigers. Pacific will conclude the regular season at home against San Francisco on Saturday, Feb. 28 at 3 p.m. at the Alex G. Spanos Center.
 
NOTES
- The Tigers will be going for their first win over a ranked opponent since March 21, 2004 when they beat No. 21 Providence in the NCAA Tournament.
 
- Pacific has seven wins all-time vs. ranked opponents. The highest ranked team the Tigers have ever beaten in a true road game was No. 24 New Mexico State on Jan. 28, 1995. The last time Pacific beat a team ranked as high as No. 11 was Feb. 4, 1993 in a 62-56 home victory over No. 10 UNLV.
 
- Pacific has doubled its conference win total from last year and is one away from doubling its overall win total. The Tigers have surpassed their overall win total by eight games and conference win total by four games from last season. It's the second year in a row under head coach Dave Smart that the Tigers have increased their win total from the year prior.
 
- The Tigers have more overall and conference wins than the last two years combined.
 
- Pacific has clinched its first winning season since 2019-20 and third since rejoining the league in 2013-14.
 
- Pacific has outrebounded 14 of 16 opponents in conference this season. The Tigers rank top-15 in the nation in rebounding margin with a +8.9 mark.
 
- Pacific ranks top-40 in the country in three-point percentage (.369) and top-50 in free throw percentage (.762).
 
- The Tigers are 12-0 this year when they have more fast break points.
 
- Pacific is 13-0 under Dave Smart in two seasons when holding the opposition to under 60 points and 10-0 (5-0 WCC) this year.
 
- Four different Tigers have recorded a double-double in a game this year including seniors Isaac Jack, Wainwright, Rochelin and Ralph.
 
- Pacific has only used two starting lineups this season. Clayton and junior Kajus Kublickas have flipped at the point guard position.
 
Tigers Tickets
Tickets for upcoming events can be purchased through the PacificTigers.com tickets tab, or by calling the Box Office at 209-946-2474.  Groups of 10 or more are eligible for a group discount and exclusive fan experiences.
 
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